Wednesday, September 04, 2019

HONEST REPORTING REQUIRES RESTRAINT

Two days after the shooting in Odessa, Texas that left five people dead, I put on the TV early afternoon and saw on the screen: ‘BREAKING NEWS-MASS SHOOTING IN ODESSA!’ This left me stunned or shocked as I tried to comprehend the news.

Could it be that a second shooting occurred in the same place like the one that was reported a few days ago? Are things getting that bad that we now have regular mass shootings? Are we all doomed and heading to self-destruction?

As I watched I noticed that the film coverage was the same as I saw the other day! I figured maybe the station broadcasters were using what they had on hand for illustrative purposes only. Then I decided that I was confused by all this reporting and consulted the newspapers I had leftover from the days past and it showed the same info. It dawned on me that it was old news with a new urgency to retain and excite viewers to stay on their channel.

This makes me angry and in a way, I can understand Trump’s “Fake News” claim when they doctor up the graphics to convey immediate and current news that it is disguised as something it isn’t.

It is time for the talking heads news commentators to get their act together and start reporting the news honestly.

 

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