Tom Brokaw Slams Press Drumbeat For Hillary’s Exit
DAVID BAUDER | June 9, 2008 12:01 AM EST
…”Americans have taken a deep interest in the campaign and the media, particularly cable news, has responded to strong ratings by giving them more, more, more. It encouraged a predictive culture, fueled by opinion polls. It was not enough to report what was happening; people needed to prove themselves by talking with assurance about what will happen.
“There was also an overwhelming need for closure, odd for a very close race even in the context of recent history, when Gary Hart and Ted Kennedy took losing nomination fights to the summer conventions. As one veteran political reporter wondered recently: why would journalists seem so eager to see the best story of their life end?
…
–
I’d like to be a fly on the wall in a serious journalism class, and hear a discussion of this topic, because this really bothers me. While I liked the election coverage provided by MSNBC over the other networks thus far, they do seem to have too much time on their hands, and it leads them away from the facts and into the realm of the speculative — in a way that is often leading or suggestive to their viewership IMO. And it seems endemic of the 24-hour news cycle. It’s just too much!