Is National TV News Really “News”

From the Jennifer Rubin opinion piece in the Washington Post 5/7/23

“The current state of TV news distresses me greatly. New outlets could spend their 24/7 coverage doing investigative reporting and deep dives into critical subjects; instead, they spend hours chewing over the same few stories. Panelists talk about the same items and raise the same arguments. CNN could try to do something innovative: real investigations, longer segments to explain complex issues, in-depth interviews with experts, etc. Imagine if it devoted just an hour a day to threats to democracy or the impact of climate change on different regions of the country. Apparently it believes there is no audience for anything other than regurgitated news and stale talking points. This is a critical moment for our democracy, and we need a better TV media than what we have.”

Jennifer Rubin, opinion columnist

Oh How the Mighty Have Fallen

The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;

And on the pedestal, these words appear:

. . . Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!

Nothing beside remains. Round the decay

Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare

The lone and level sands stretch far away.”

Excerpt from the Poem Ozymandias by Percy Shelley

Goodbye Chris Licht from CNN – Article from The Guardian 6/7/23

https://www.theguardian.com/media/2023/jun/07/chris-licht-leaves-cnn

Journalism-Speak Translations:

From Daily Kos:

“. . . when a reporter relays information from “a source close to” someone important, we’re probably looking at a shopped story—one the source was explicitly asked to give to the media. When they say “who wasn’t authorized to speak publicly,” that just means the source doesn’t want their own name attached. And yes, “source close to ‘(newsmaker)’ can often just mean ‘(newsmaker)’ themselves.”