While most media commentators obsess over the "news" that Diane Sawyer will be replacing Charlie Gibson on ABC World News, there are at least some observers who remain more concerned with content. The Washington Post's E.J. Dionne weighs in this morning on the sensationalism that has dominated coverage of public participation in the health care insurance reform debate. What we learn about the role of television is not surprising, but it does help remind us why things are going the way they are:
The most disturbing account came from Rep. David Price of North Carolina, who spoke with a stringer for one of the television networks at a large town-hall meeting he held in Durham.
The stringer said he was one of 10 people around the country assigned to watch such encounters. Price said he was told flatly: "Your meeting doesn't get covered unless it blows up." As it happens, the Durham audience was broadly sympathetic to reform efforts. No "news" there.
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Commercial network news is not based on unbiased ethical reporting of events but on keeping people watching and advertisers paying. Ratings are the issue, not truth. If they could get away with it half the 'news' would be about aliens and bigfoot.
That's the trouble with privately-owned for-profit media: the product is not the news, it's you, and the customers aren't you, it's the advertizers.
And this is why I only get my 'news' from the internet. I can't stand TV and the news they report makes me sick. Still, I know that the interenet is prone to the same problems, but at least I can find what others are saying. And at least to me, that sort of drama TV is boring.
Ah but you see this immediately suggests a ploy for Democratic supporters to go for. This all has to be done with denialbility on the part of the congress critter though.
Have a large group of supporters pose as teabaggers and have them call the media beforehand to let them know you are going to be there to take a strip out of the representative/senator's hide over health care. Then have them razz the speaker for a bit and as he defends the plan have them slowly convert over to his/her side :)
probably won't fool many for long but it will piss off the real teabaggers, which is justification enough for doing it, and it will make the news :)
But according to the popular media, that IS news - a health care reform meeting where some crazy wingnut has _not_ gone ballistic. A peaceful assembly with the exchange of knowledge and ideas. Somebody needs to get in there and report that sudden change of events.
I live in D.C. and I get my news from BBC Americas.
According to James Murdoch, the BBC is an evil 'state' owned bunch who exist only to take the bread from his mouth. Which is why we like it.