The media blitz needs to STOP NOW!!

[Heidi]

With the news that there are, in all likelihood, members of Bin Laden’s terrorist group still remaining in the U.S. who have established sufficient roots within their American communities not to raise suspicion, I admit that I feared the violence such a disclosure would undoubtedly unleash.

As has happened, I was concerned that this news would incite some to personally retaliate against anyone of eastern Asian, Arabic and Islamic cultures and religion. Upon further consideration, though, those who would react with violence against innocent Arab, Indian and Islamic-Americans and Canadians are utter morons whose racism justifies, in their minds, any and all acts of violence under the guise of a perverted patriotism. They’re more an indication of the violent society that we’ve lived in for decades than an indication of the media’s purported ‘irresponsibility’.

I’d also add that there are greater numbers of people who’ve now been made aware that our fellow North Americans are being threatened, beaten, their mosques burnt and pillaged - who will rush to the assistance of these innocent Arab, Indian and Islamic-Americans and Canadians.

I do believe that awareness breeds safety and precaution and it is better to know that there may remain clear and present dangers than to continue to live under the false pretense of national and personal safety. For ‘arming’ us with information, I thank the media for enabling us to keep ourselves even a tad safer.

(Oh and an addendum, we may not agree about some things Snowbird but, in response to your post above, amen and halleluah!)

[DMK]

Well, Julie… it’s like The Boss (Springsteen) said… 67 channels and nothing on…

(oh, how out of date that song is! Shouldn’t it be 967 channels and nothing on?)

I was going to note that out of 500 plus channels, there were about 10 channels with continuous newscasts, the other channels were back to regular broadcasts (most never left it), but that presupposes one has a dish or cable…

[moose]

umm, well… bite me Robby…(meant in as comical a way as can possibly be perceived)

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[AHC]

What Erin said!!!

[Jennasis]

There’s lots of things I wish I didn’t have to do as far as covering news is concerned…but let’s remember…it is my job. That’s what they pay me to do (and the reporters too). We DON’T like it. We usually try very hard to convince the higher ups that it is a bad idea to go to the disaster sight. And don’t forget the all important police line. WE ARE ONLY ALLOWED TO GO AS CLOSE TO THE “SCENE” AS POLICE DEEM SAFE. (sometimes it still feels too close.)

We hate knocking on doors to ask the recently widowed woman how she feels to have lost her husband…

We hate going to funerals and looking like vultures…

We hate going to crime scenes…

We hate standing out in blizzards and hurricanes warning people to “stay inside at all costs” while we freeze/get blown away…

We are being paid to do a job, and the job is often unpleasant. Just keep that in mind when you think about news. Don’t be angry with the reporters, or the photographers, or the cameraman. It is never our idea to be there. Be angry with station managers, news directors, editors, and producers. They are the decision makers…

[Glimmerglass]

An interesting commentary from Washington Post writer, Howard Kurtz

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A30086-2001Sep14.html

[dogchushu]

Lily, I have a number of friends in NYC who say you can’t appreciate just how devasted the area is from the news photos alone. I guess they’re right. On the air, you only see a pile of rubble, filling up a small TV screen. You don’t see how huge the area is, you don’t smell it, and you don’t get the soot in your eyes/on your clothes/in your lungs.

[suzy]

>>> I have YET to see any of my journalistic brethren SENSATIONALIZE anything that has happened so far.

I think that what Velvet is getting at (and she can jump in and correct me as needed) is her displeasure with the constant re-running of the crash footage. I’ve viewed it once, was totally appalled and heartbroken, and don’t EVER need to see it again. It is etched in my memory FOREVER. I don’t need to have it beaten into me again and again and again. I watched one half hour of TV coverage of this event and that’s it. I am choosing to listen to the radio instead because I want to know what’s going on, but I don’t want to be repeatedly bombarded with such horrible images.

>>>You don’t know ANYTHING about journalism, or what it takes to put together a newspaper or a news broadcast so step the heck off with your media bashing.

My knowledge of journalism is limited too, but like everyone else, I am entitled to my opinion on what’s appropriate to show or print. That’s why I’ve turned off my TV set. I respect that your opinion is different than mine.

>>>Over 4000 people are missing and most likely dead and you have the GALL to complain about news coverage???

Whether I agree with Velvet or not, I will defend her right to question the news coverage.

>>>You’re lucky…you can turn off the tv any time you want and escape it. Those of us who live and work in NYC cannot escape it…EVER.

Even though I wasn’t there first hand, I am a US citizen and can no more ignore what has happened than you can. This problem belongs to ALL of us. Sure I can shut off the TV set, but that doesn’t make the tragedy go away nor does it relieve me of the problem. Those of us in the USA cannot escape it – EVER.

>>> Will the footage of the crash be shown again, and again…you bet. It hurts…it makes me cry to watch it…but we can never EVER be allowed to forget.

This is where you and I differ. I don’t need to see it more than once. My guess is that Velvet shares that feeling which is what prompted her posts.

>>>I am angry. Angry at who did this, the heartless monsters. And at the moment, i’m angry at how obtuse your being. but I understand that it is hard for you to even begin to comprehend what we see here. You just can’t expect the world to “go back to normal” only 4 days after the greatest tragedy on American soil took place.

I don’t think that anyone with the ability to think rationally thinks that things can go back to normal. We have entered a new era. I understand and appreciate your anger but think that it is misdirected. Let’s keep the real enemy in sight and not waste energy elsewhere.

[DMK]

Sign me up for the Beezer Fan Club, while you are at it Heidi!

[Houdini]

I have appreciated all the news coverage that shows how other nations are reacting to the attack and what steps are being taken to find the people responsible. What I do not like are the reporters who ask the rescue workers to describe the horrors that they are seeing. People do not need to hear this. It has to be so hard for people who are still missing loved ones to hear the “horrors” described on television.

>>>“Sticking feathers up your butt does not make you a chicken”<<<

[Velvet]

Catuskate, I won’t even attempt to dignify that with a reply.

All I have to say is, I’m glad they did see sense and finally stop. Pretty much right at the time I was fed up, everyone else was as well…obviously.

And, as for sending people into war zones to report the news, why is that heroic? Isn’t that a job choice? Are we all heroes for starting young horses and risking our necks?

Also, how many reporters does it take to report a story? Why do so many have to go to the same place? Because it’s a competitive “business.” News is business. There is no altruism in this. People are paid for it. The problem I have is when they risk their lives for the awards, and sometimes also risk the lives of others who have to protect them–from themselves.

Okay, go ahead and flame out. I’m getting very used to it. But I’ve also realized it is not just my group of friends that agree with me. I’ve run into MANY people on the street who are voicing my same opinions.

heavy sigh

[JB]

I actually love the fact that when I want/need to hear more, I can get it instantaneously. When I need a break, that’s what Animal Planet’s Funniest Animal Video’s are for!

[suzy]

Not wanting to see any more images has nothing to do with being hard-hearted; it’s actually the contrary. I was reaching a point where I could hardly function because the footage was so disturbing. I can’t help the people who are gone, so I want to focus my attention on better understanding the Middle Eastern countries and their leaders. Maybe by better understanding the many and complex issues here, I can in some very small way be a part of the solution instead of just another useless observer at a horrendous “car wreck.”

[dogchushu]

Oh Jennaisis, I don’t think anyone feels you enjoy this. It must be so awful to witness things in person. And I’m sorry for all of you that have to be there day after day, reliving events with rescue workers and those searching for survivors. Their stories are heartbreaking to watch from the safety and separation of my comfy living room. I wouldn’t be able to bear it in person, and you are a stronger person than I am for going through it as you have.

I’ve seen many shots taken by camera persons whose actions, in my opinion, rival the heroism of the reporters who stayed out in the open during the London blitz to capture the story as it unfolded. I saw shots of the towers falling while everyone else was running for safety. I’ve heard one story of photographer who stayed while everyone else ran for safety and was literally picked off his feet and blown 10 yards by the air pressure created by on of the falling towers. No one near him was left uninjured. I doubt I’d have the courage to stay and report… my pictures would all be “here I am, running away.”

But, as tragic as it is, it’s history. And it needs to be documented. That documentation of prior historic events (the London blitz, Pearl Harbor, the Vietnam War, etc.) have preserved them for us and brought them to generations who were not alive to witness them.

I think most people have issues with the constant replaying of events that they’re sickened by seeing. Not with the actual recording of those events. But as many have mentioned, there is an off switch to that television set.

Hang in there Jennaisis. What you must be going through makes my “bad days at the office” pale in comparison. But what you do is extremely valuable and is appreciated.

[Celia]

If you need to breathe and wish not to be informed, turn off the television. Don’t blame the news media - that’s their job.

[buryinghill1]

When I was in elementary school, JFK was murdered. Our teachers cried, the school bus driver cried and we got shipped out of school quickly.
My dad came home from work and he and my mom cried. They sat us down for DAYS in front of the black & white TV. We watched the funeral (remember the horse with the boots turned backwards?).
Mom and dad wanted us to grieve with “the whole country.” It was a lesson in unity. And thank god we had that lesson.
Thank god we have the press (right or wrong) to show us the awful truth, rather than government fabricated news!

[Colin]

I’d watch it…Erin is a redhead, you know…

[Sweet_Pea]

<BLOCKQUOTE class=“ip-ubbcode-quote”><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR> How does this differ from showing the towers being hit or collapsing? Were the deaths of those people less horrific? Less real? Does seeing an image of a person somehow make their tragedy more real? Is that a reasonable response?
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

DMK, my thoughts exactly. I was there, I witnessed it firsthand. I still watch the TV - and each time I see those planes crash, it is no less horiffic. This is probably the hugest tragedy EVER, in the history of the world. I think that it is important that people realize just how horrible this is. If it is too much for you, turn off the TV.

[InWhyCee]

Thank you, Erin, for NOT locking these threads. As much as I would LOVE for my life to get back to normal, the fact remains that the past week has been unprecedented for everyone. While I’m (finally!) returning to the barn tonight, that won’t mean a large part of my me won’t still be concentrated elsewhere. Eventually the “horsey” posts will return, but until then I’m very interested in what everyone else (even Robbie) has to say about life outside the stable.

[suzy]

I don’t think that the people with 7th grade educations have the clout to affect what the U.S. politicians choose to do in response to the recent attack, so I’m not overly concerned about their watching the news non-stop. And, at the risk of sounding disgustingly DQish, they probably tire of this sort of news quickly and run out and rent an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie. (See Suzy duck!)

The decision makers in our country (even if you didn’t vote for them) are intelligent, well-educated people who better understand the international implications than any of us can (um, generic us. I’m sure there are probably some Middle Eastern scholars here who understand the situation quite well).

What I would like to see on the news in the near future is more history on the Middle Eastern conflict(s), the players, and what people in the know think should be the U.S.'s reponse to this. We needed to see what had happened and to take the time to grieve. Then, it’s important to move forward and figure out how to handle what has happened.