Stop Scaring Us
Dear Local News Media,
Please stop trying to scare us. I know you're desperate for ratings and will whore yourself out to get them, but try to resist the urge. We do not need to be frightened into watching your news broadcast. Every night there does not need to be something that will potentially kill us if we do not watch. Case in point last night and the great freeze. Flipping stations last night at least 2 stations with the dangers of black ice. Included were shots of accidents and reports of below zero temperatures tomorrow morning. The tone was definitely meant to scare us as was all the previews I saw last night. I get it, it's cold. And it snowed 36 hours ago. And there may be some slick spots. But this isn't something new. And it shouldn't make me afraid to go to work. In fact, Fox's Voice Your Choice segment was whether Chicago businesses should be open when it gets so cold. Combine that with the threat of black ice...well, if Katrina and Black Ice ever procreated the world would get swept up in a tsunami that would burst the space time continuum and end time as we know it.
And this is going to sound naive but try to remember what your role is supposed to be. It is not exclusively to make money. I would even argue that money is at most a secondary goal. Your primary goal is to inform us. That is why the airwaves were meant to be a public good that you rent out. I know that's not actually the case, but that is the ideal. So please resist the temptation to spread your legs the next time you have the great fearmongering story that is actually advice everyone's parents told them over the years.
Your Pal in Chi-Town,
Damn Dirty Hippie
Please stop trying to scare us. I know you're desperate for ratings and will whore yourself out to get them, but try to resist the urge. We do not need to be frightened into watching your news broadcast. Every night there does not need to be something that will potentially kill us if we do not watch. Case in point last night and the great freeze. Flipping stations last night at least 2 stations with the dangers of black ice. Included were shots of accidents and reports of below zero temperatures tomorrow morning. The tone was definitely meant to scare us as was all the previews I saw last night. I get it, it's cold. And it snowed 36 hours ago. And there may be some slick spots. But this isn't something new. And it shouldn't make me afraid to go to work. In fact, Fox's Voice Your Choice segment was whether Chicago businesses should be open when it gets so cold. Combine that with the threat of black ice...well, if Katrina and Black Ice ever procreated the world would get swept up in a tsunami that would burst the space time continuum and end time as we know it.
And this is going to sound naive but try to remember what your role is supposed to be. It is not exclusively to make money. I would even argue that money is at most a secondary goal. Your primary goal is to inform us. That is why the airwaves were meant to be a public good that you rent out. I know that's not actually the case, but that is the ideal. So please resist the temptation to spread your legs the next time you have the great fearmongering story that is actually advice everyone's parents told them over the years.
Your Pal in Chi-Town,
Damn Dirty Hippie
posted by Tom G at 2/08/2007
1 Comments:
A resounding AMEN!!!
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