From the people in the Southern states directly coping with the BP caused oil spill disaster,
to the know-it-alls in the news media, all the frustration about that company and the federal government
reactions to the crisis is understandable.
However, some of those frustrations, spewing out of the mouths of a few, so-called respectable
news people, are becoming more and more ANNOYING!
President Obama's speech last evening was indeed short, but, to many in his intended audience, it was
impressive in tone and approach.
There was "a call to arms" of sorts for the American people,
and his strength as a young
and determined leader for this nation came across loud and clear for all
willing to see it.
Mr. Obama was forceful and candid with the American people.
Was it the perfect speech that covered everything with full details and depth,...
No way. In other words, it offered about as much content and detail as most news reporting
on the crisis the past few weeks.
Nevertheless, the president's address did what it needed to do, namely,
to fully alert the nation about the urgency of this moment, and help all who are adult enough to face
the stark reality of this incredible BP blunder to come up to speed on what everyone needs to know.
I suspect there are some who finally woke up last night to the enormity of this HUGE
problem and efforts that will be needed well into the future to fix the fallout.
Now...WE THE PEOPLE need to get on board now, pay attention, and collectively hold BP
and the government's
feet the to the fire from now on. Above all, we all need to stop the
excessive focus on Mr. Obama's performance alone.
If we must take him to task, the public also has every right to take media performance to task as well.
In today's media frenzy world, news people, especially in broadcast, are not being thorough enough
when trying to separate their strong personal opinions from their reporting of the timeliness, effectiveness
and impact of the president's efforts. Predictably, the struggle for TV ratings and advertising dollars
clearly seems to be the reason why 'We the People' are not getting what we REALLY need.
Watching MSNBC's Keith Olbermann, Chris Mathews and Newsweek's Howard Fineman's
post address on-air comments, for example, sadly showcased how far away we've gotten from
Walter Cronkite and
what quality broadcast journalism should be about. These educated and informed
men blew off steam with unrestrained biased commentary, sounding exactly like the folks on FOX News
they complain
about so much. Their comments after the speech, to me, did more to demoralize the
viewing public than inform it. The three were trying to make the point that this was another defining moment in
American history
for all people to come together with positive resolve. Unfortunately, their persistent rants
sounded more like
disappointed partisans who felt the speech just didn't measure up to what they individually expected
or wanted. As well informed as you are gentlemen, you definitely crossed the line that is
suppose to separate you from those folks who say they are fair and balanced.
At a time when everyone concedes we need more unified efforts in the Gulf, intelligent thinking and
effective responses, these three media experts sounded more like those angry and self-righteous
Tea Baggers. You know, those folks who never seem to stop talking and allow this president a fair chance
to lead the nation his way, with his style, in his approach. Now even a network known for liking Mr. Obama
could resist falling into the credibility trap of dictating what America's new young leader ought
to be doing. Do you recall the news media being so arrogant and so blatantly rude and presumptuous
with FDR, LBJ or Ronald Reagan during crisis moments?
It's no wonder many who live outside the east coast believe there is an
energy, mindset, and attitude that infests national news media reporting that ultimately gets shoved down
every news consumer's throats. Enough already. During this legitimate and historic crisis, which all Americans
need to
fully understand, we need more professionalism from our First Amendment brothers and sisters.
It's time to stop seeing every hot story as a media opportunity to boost ratings and ad sales
which makes you more of a problem than a help to WE THE PEOPLE.
News media in print, online and broadcast need to back off and actually DO THEIR JOBS better!
Truth be told, Mr. Obama's response to the BP oil spill in April was no slower than the news
media's reaction itself. While teaching journalism at that time at San Jose State University,
I recall talking to my
class about how this story at the outset and how it could explode into something huge.
But early news reports
did not suggest much urgency. In fact most stories were rather simplistic and
straightforward in approach,
relying exclusively on BP official press releases. It seems it took weeks
before print, online and broadcast news managers and
anchors, especially those at CBS, NBC and ABC,
to actually anticipate this story and show up on the Gulf Coast to provide important insights and a public service.
Then, there's this elephant in the room.
If BP is to be criticized for trying to save money and protect stockholders from the outset
of the crisis, it seems more than fair to suggest the news media, at the outset of this disaster,
stayed focused on its regular and ridiculous obsession of focusing on eye-catching visual stories
of simplistic or emotional value (but easy to produce and digest) all for the sake of holding on to
their diminished
subscription numbers and tiny audience shares.
Where was the real watchdog coverage of the oil industry by our news media?
It clearly missed a moment to shine, in the best interest of the American people, when President
Obama announced months ago he would allow more drilling offshore.
From that moment to this one, what we've gotten mostly is a lot of talk, opinion and spin, but very
little digging and clarity on government regulatory agencies.
Why did it take the BP crisis to FINALLY get a look at
the cozy relationship between the oil industry and some fed regulators?
Truth be told, even if newsrooms were considering such a challenging story,
many these days, are hard pressed to tackle such an important story given widespread
media industry cutbacks and layoffs, all to keep their profit margins in tact. Easy to cover stories
wrapped in endless, hot button, cross-fire talk seems to be the 21st century version of American journalism.
For millions of people, it's a scandal that our news organizations in this country have become
so shallow and self serving in approach. What people need to know, in all kinds of stories, local and national,
is now sadly missing. Where is the pride we once stood firm in supporting about our
First Amendment responsibilities. Apparently today's game changer powerhouse in TV ratings
has had a horrible affect on how quality journalists think and motivate themselves each day.
It seems we're stuck with tons and tons of strong opinions and quick spin reactions
that bombard the airwaves, and infiltrate newspaper, magazine reporting...
ultimately influencing and driving public thoughts and actions.
This splash for making cash seems more important than finding out what we really
need to know to understand and navigate difficult situations and issues..
More and more this 'nonsense news,' coming from today's editors and producers,
including older veterans and young pups, emphasizes
filling space and time over actually finding and offering something
of real substance and value for public understanding.
If FDR had today's media to deal with, surely he'd be fighting off persistent questions
or criticisms about how a person in a wheelchair was slowed in his response to managing a
world war.
His greatness might never have been recognized.
News folks should know something else about public perceptions today.
Traveling back and forth to the Gulf region to anchor the news periodically is nowadays
more for show
than President's Obama's numerous visits. The people in the affected area keep
saying when he is there something gets done. Maybe if Katie Couric, Diane Sawyer, and Brian Williams
treated the Gulf region oil spill like an actual war, maybe they would stay as long as they did
when they went to Iraq and Afghanistan and get a real feel for what's going on.
Right now their drop-in, guest star visits don't seem to be accomplishing much
in the public's eye.
We need our national media on the ground and clear evidence of their organization's commitment
to seeing this issue through the long haul. It's simply not enough to push graphics counting the days of the
BP oil spill and offering daily two minute update reports from a few dedicated correspondents the networks
leave behind for good show. Remember the detailed coverage the nation got when two planes attacked
New York and the Pentagon in Washington? The Gulf region deserves no less now.
If President Obama needs to be more like FDR in World War II, then our current news media
must perform more like the Washington Post did as the Nixon-Watergate story unfolded.
Tenacious critical thinking and digging which offers unique daily discoveries and
important developments is far more important to the American people than seeing news anchors
standing on the shore of the Gulf offering very few minutes of information.
Journalists are and should always be on the front lines of history in the making. However, we don't
need today's journalists, pundits and former Capitol Hill insiders, offering snap, final analysis of
daily developments in the Gulf oil spill. Leave the judgments of time to the real historians,
people trained to collect all the data, study all the actions and all reactions in total, then
provide comprehensive perspectives on how to value memorable and challenging moments in
American history. Most news reporters and anchors are not up to that important task at all.
Finally, if you insist on wasting space and time giving Mr. Obama grades on his performance
as this
crisis unfolds, then be honest and analyze your efforts along the way. Make it a
regular contribution to your overall efforts. People like to see that the media is not above
review and criticism too.
WE THE PEOPLE, in our free society, always have the privilege of grading you
even if you won't report that. So far, on this Gulf oil spill,
President Obama's grade point average seems to be better and offering more
insight and hope than the media's.
So...who is this guy saying all this?
Just someone who always pays attentions, teaches others how to do the same,...
someone who was taught good journalism techniques, and someone ...
who
misses the more informative approach and wisdom of Walter Cronkite
now more than ever.
Commentary by: Bob Rucker
Journalism Professor and Broadcast News Coordinator
San Jose State University
Video: Presidential Address on BP oil spill
Online News Report: President's 1st Oval Office Address
