OETA’s Dick Pryor on Convention Coverage
By Dick Pryor
As a journalist, I understand a lot of what is going on in the production and news decisions involved in covering the conventions. I know the network news operations grudgingly devote air time to what they consider highly-choreographed “infomercials.” They think politics is a turn-off for many. The nets want to showcase their anchor, reporting and commentary talent and produce “compelling” television that will hold viewers and develop audiences for their day-to-day programming.
The irony is that the nets gladly devote time for what amounts to a large extent to “infomercials” for their on-air capabilities, personnel and programs, while ignoring much of the content of the convention. In so doing, they diminish the relevance of the conventions, and then complain that the conventions are irrelevant.
Don’t get me wrong. Some of the discussion is enlightening, some is important, some may even be compelling. But, in the “new media” environment of the Internet and “citizen journalism,” “unfiltered” news is becoming more and more important to consumers, with journalists reporting on events and supplementing their reports with meaningful information (on-air and on-line), so that viewers can make up their own minds and become better citizens. THAT is the new reality of media “public service” and news in the digital world. Read more…
Well said.
Comment by SoonerThought — August 27, 2008 @ 6:42 pm
As an ex journalist I don’t understand why the left is favored and the right is held up to ridicule(I do understand but it would have ruined my line of reasoning and would have become really wordy).
Is this some form of ancestor hate that moves people who come from good family values homes to try to build a new consensus of “if it feels good do it” limited morality after setting at the feet of professional educator change agents?
Comment by Jim — August 27, 2008 @ 7:30 pm
In other words, “I feel slighted that nobody stuck a camera on Lisa and let her bleat on and on endlessly about nothing”.
Comment by Butchey Weinstein — August 27, 2008 @ 7:32 pm
Thnat’s why there is C-SPAN!!
If PBS won’t do it, who will?
TruTV, A&E, Discovery, National Geographic, and about 100 cable channels who don’t do beg-a-thons twice a year pimping shows they never show the rest of the year.
I’m Dick Pryor, and that’s it for today’s edition of Nerd News!
Comment by Walter — August 27, 2008 @ 8:31 pm
Walter you are so on target.
The plan is to take the public tax provided capital investment at PBS private for liberal progressive use.
Comment by Jim — August 27, 2008 @ 11:21 pm
Dick, you are right on target. I noticed that liberal and progressive were mentioned in the same sentence in Jim’s earlier mail. Thank God we ARE progressive. If you need your daily fix of right wing slop, Butchey, stick to Faux News.
Comment by E. Guadarrama — September 28, 2008 @ 10:17 am