Remember when we got our national TV news from one of only three sources? It was ABC, CBS or NBC. Period. That was it. In the old days, we trusted network TV news anchors so much, they became like members of the family. Walter Kronkite, of CBS, was playfully known as America's "Uncle Walter." The big three television networks were our main source for coverage of everything from the Vietnam War to the national political embarrassment, that was Watergate.
Growing up in east Hattiesburg, it was a long time before cable-TV arrived on our side of town. (For us, cable-TV was a luxury provided to Hattiesburg's higher income neighborhoods.)
At our house, national TV news was limited to, basically, two networks, NBC, brought to us by local affiliate WDAM-TV, Chanel 7. We could also get ABC news, WLOX-TV, Channel 13 from Mississippi's gulf coast. 70 miles away, WLOX must have one powerful transmitter.
We could usually get them clearly, without the aid of cable.
When it came to national news, my parents watched only NBC, the Huntley-Brinkley report, 5:30PM, weekdays on channel 7.
Uncle Walter and the CBS Evening News were mostly unknown to me, we had limited access to the network.
To get CBS, it took quite a bit of expertise, finagling with our tall, outside metal antenna. (Remember those?) You went outside, physically rotating the metal antenna pole, while a sibling shouted to you from inside how good the reception had gotten.
Once the antenna was aimed just right, southeast, you might get a fairly decent picture from the CBS affiliate, WKRG-TV, Channel 5, in Mobile. (Reception was better at night, especially when the weather was perfect, you know, sort of like with DISH-TV)
Eventually though, cable-TV did arrive in my old neighborhood and, oh joy! It meant I could watch The Price Is Right every afternoon on CBS. (The game show began its life as a 30-minute afternoon show.) But...back to the news.
Cable TV arrived just in time for us to see Ted Turner launch his 24-hour all news network, CNN. In fact, CNN will be celebrating its 40th anniversary next month.
And I can hear them now, the collective boos from a sizable part of the TV viewing audience. These days, you either love or hate CNN. The network is viewed by conservatives as nothing more than a liberal mouthpiece for the Democratic party.
And of course, they now have a "partner in crime," the equally left-leaning MSNBC. But, not to worry, conservatives have their own media cheerleader, the every bit as right-leaning FOX News.
FOX was the brainchild of Rupert Murdoch, an Australian media mogul who wished to expand his success in the American TV market.
After having launched FOX Broadcasting Company, (the network that gave us The Simpsons), Murdoch wanted a larger footprint in the American television market, by branching off into news. His attempt to purchase CNN failed, so Murdoch ended up launching his own 24-hour news channel, as FOX News was born. Mr. Murdoch brought former Republican political consultant, Roger Ailes, along with him to oversee the network.
Murdoch had a plan. He viewed network television news as having a distinctly liberal bias and, in a savvy marketing move, positioned FOX as a counterpoint to his perceived bias.
You may remember FOX's original tagline which, interestingly enough, is no longer used. They called themselves the "Fair and balanced" news network.
Meanwhile, the same year as FOX, 1996, NBC launched MSNBC which, you may recall, began as a partnership between Microsoft and NBC, hence the call letters.
Since then, MSNBC has become more an extension of NBC's news division. And so, let the news wars begin.
TV news fiend that I am, it's interesting to watch how the three networks cover the same story. In the political bubbles we live in, depending on which network you watch, we walk away with different interpretations of the same news story.
No one needs to be reminded, if you're a Democrat, you'll favor CNN or MSNBC's coverage. Of course, if you're Republican, only FOX News will provide the truth.
In today's polarized political environment, and in the age of the Covid-19 virus, their differences affect how each of the networks have covered the pandemic. CNN and MSNBC paint Coronavirus as a modern day apocalypse.
At first, Fox News downplayed its seriousness, as did many conservative politicians, including the President.
Among Donald Trump's earlier proclamations, the Coronavirus was a political hoax, cooked up by Democrats, aimed at sandbagging his reelection efforts. Early on, when reported cases numbered only 15, Mr. Trump famously assured us, the number would soon drop to 10, then 5, and eventually zero.
Not quite how things turned out. As of this writing, there are more than 1.4 million cases, and over 80,000 deaths in the United States, and growing. Sadly, along with the rest of the country, Mississippi's total number of reported Covid-19 cases, and deaths, continues to rise.
To be fair, in the early days, lots of people downplayed Covid-19's seriousness, including the newly famous infectious diseases expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, and Governor Mario Cuomo.
hcs_second_in-story_broadstreet
In fact, the governor's state, New York, became an epicenter for the virus. Thankfully, the state's number of reported cases appears to have peaked.
I'm not a politician but, as pointed out in earlier issues of this newspaper, I was one of those people who thought the Covid-19 crisis was being overblown. "What, me worry?" Well, maybe not at first, but I sure am taking it seriously now. And what about you? Where do you fall on the Covid-19 stress-out meter?
America has been socially and economically shut down for months, with shelter-in-place the rule of the day. We were all instructed, for the safety of ourselves, our families and for that of the general population, to stay home. The goal being to strangle Covid-19, taking away the virus's opportunity to spread.
With time though, Americans have grown weary and restless, feeling like prisoners in our own homes. We wanted out and many of our state's governors got the message. With restrictions in place, most of the 50 states are now slowly reopening their doors to business, Mississippi among them.
Governor Tate Reeves, is siding with the President and many other governors, saying its time to reopen, moving Mississippi from stay-at-home, to a less-restrictive safer-at-home plan.
In spite of our governor's relaxing of the rules, Hattiesburg Mayor, Toby Barker, has taken a more tepid approach to reopening our city, also taking some heat for his stance.
But I respect the mayor's position.
Covid-19 cases in the Pine Belt do not appear to have peaked, and that's concerning. Better safe-at-home, than sick-in-the-hospital. Or worse.
Talk about being at a fork in the road. So, which way do we go?
If you watch CNN or MSNBC, chances are, you're erring on the side of caution, maybe even alarmed at our country's attempt at a quick return to normalcy. You may ask, as I do, are our efforts premature, at best? Dangerous, at worse?
On the other side of the TV news political divide, FOX News, is taking (you'll pardon the ironic pun) a more "liberal" approach. FOX, along with the President, leans toward reopening America for business...now.
I can appreciate arguments from both sides, I'm all for opening things back up. Shelter-in-place, safer-at-home, call it what you want. Whatever.
But it's costing our economy to suffer and, in more human terms, has cost millions of Americans their jobs and livelihoods, not to mention small businesses in danger of collapsing.
On the flip side is our country's health, leaving us with a tough choice. Which is more important, saving jobs and businesses, or saving lives?
The President still suggests the virus may "disappear" on its own, I don't buy that. Some of his supporters even believe the number of reported deaths are exaggerated. (Shades of the Covid-19 hoax theory.)
Now comes news though, Covid-19 has invaded the walls of the White House West Wing. Assistants to both the President and Vice-President have tested positive for the virus. We're told, White House staffers are tested regularly , and I can certainly appreciate the importance of that.
But for everyday Americans, including those on the front lines, from medical workers to grocery store clerks, testing is not so readily available for many of them. Doesn't seem fair, or even moral.
A hoax? It will disappear? Even if spread of the Cornonavirus ebbs as warmer weather arrives, it's still out there, the invisible enemy.
Some medical experts, including Dr. Fauci, believe the virus may reemerge this fall, the same time our annual flu season returns. If that happens, and the two viruses join forces, we will have set ourselves up for an even greater national medical emergency.
No matter which news network you watch, no one has all the answers.
Not CNN, FOX News, MSNBC, the President or any other politician, for that matter. The most vexing issue is, as of right now, there does not appear to be a national and strategic plan to deal with this virus.
I'd feel a lot better about us returning to work, the mall, dining out, to normalcy, period, if the United States had a real plan on how to fight this virus, including a more widespread testing program.
Until we do, the new normal, just a few months from now, could end up being a lot scarier than the one we're facing today.
Jones is a writer and a proud graduate of both Hattiesburg High School and the University of Southern Mississippi. Look for his column in The PineBelt NEWS every other week.
"TV" - Google News
May 14, 2020 at 12:32PM
https://ift.tt/2AjPL5o
Is ANY TV NEWS TRULY 'FAIR AND BALANCED' ? - HubcitySPOKES.com
"TV" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2T73uUP
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Is ANY TV NEWS TRULY 'FAIR AND BALANCED' ? - HubcitySPOKES.com"
Post a Comment