How do you think the news media is covering the Katrina tragedy?

Do you think they're doing a good job, so-so, or............?

 

too much coverage of the looters at wal mart. not enough coverage of the oil companies looting my wallet. i'm sure live video of blacks running around with stolen TV's is great for ratings. but we're getting hosed here and the media haven't done anything to tell us why except parrot whatever spin the oil companies are putting out.

 

I think they are doing allright. It's tough to cover disaster like that. Robin from "Good Morning America" grew up in Gulfport,MS. She broke down and cried on the air while attempting to convey the horror and utter destruction down there. Gas going up is not great, but Jeez................if that's all I have to worry about than I'm the luckiest man alive. At least I have a vehicle to put gas into. Not to mention a house to park it next to. These people were left with NOTHING. Many of them have lost husbands, wives, kids. Yeah, I'll pay a little more for gas and pray for those souls in need.---Ryan

 

Looters don't advertise on the networks and cable news channels; giant oil companies do. Like the man said: "follow the money..."

 

I think the media is doing a fair job, for being the media. They are overly focusing on New Orleans but I think that's where people feel the story is right now. The only thing that drives me nuts is how they are dumb founded on so much. This mainly goes for a lot of CNN reporters that I see at news confrences. One of them basically could not comprehend what was taking so long for the Army to figure out how to block the levees. I wanted so bad for the guy to say, "hey if you have any ideas, let us know."

- Chris

 

And some of the questions asked by the reporters are just stupid.

"How do you feel about losing everything?". (not an actual question, but along those lines)

What's the person going to say? "Oh, I feel good?"

I can't remember some of the questions, but when I heard them, I wanted to ring the reporter's necks.

And just before the tragedy, what's the purpose of a reporter standing in the middle of the street during a 150 mph storm?

Sensationlism? Ratings? Both?

Just my little rant of the news media.

 

Little too much focus on Nawlins, as noted.

I KNOW they have choppers and can get someone down towards the Delta. Haven't heard too much from Biloxi or Mobile areas, but they are at least above or even with sea level. Not pretty, but they have it *somewhat* easier. Not that that is saying much...

This is stuff they need to show us. Mama one-up's us best. Moving bridges just because she can.....

http://www.wwltv.com/local/stories/0....45b559c0.html

 

I think they're doing a OK job so far. . .I'm guessing they're focusing mainly on NO because they can get there easily opposed to some of the more heavily damaged areas.

The thing that ticks me off about the media recently is that they use the word 'dead' so freely; it sounds too harsh in my opinion. "2 are dead in the Superdome. .many feared dead in the surge. . .Peter Jennings dead. . .PJPII dead. . ." Can't they use 'deceased' or 'passed away'? Thats always rubbed me the wrong way.

Man, my heart goes out to each and everyone of those poor souls that are living through the aftermath of Katrina right now. It could have hit here in Corpus, and I damn know were not prepared at all.

 

its the bad news that sells, and no news media outlet is going to tell any good news, ever. apparently no one wants to see good news.

while waiting for the hurricane to land fox news had a dude in a parking lot in a blue coat getting blown in the wind, and he would hold up a wind meter and it would show 16-17 mph winds, even though it looked way faster, i think he was trying to show that it looked worse than it was at that point.

the prez cut his marathon vacation short by a whopping 2 days to fly over the devistation in air force 1 and say oooh ahhh. while people below are struggling to get onto coast guard choppers or wade for miles to the superdome to meet up with their loved ones.

the oil companies will use this to hike up prices whether or not it actually slows production at all. they said on the news that one refinery was asking for half a million more barrels a day of oil so that they could help take up the slack of the refineries that were shut down. this only confirms my belief that the oil companies have purposely slowed gasoline production to hike up the price prior to the disaster. if one refinery can put out that much more fuel, than what if they all would? but its not in the oil companies best interest to save US money, its to slow down production and raise the price, as we the consumer will buy it no matter what it costs. THEY KNOW THIS! duh. it isnt Iraq, or the price per barrel of oil (which is also BS baloney) its all the oil comanies that are running without regulation. if oil were sold in barrels and shipped over, where are all the used oil barrel stockpiles? and if it were sold and shipped over in barrels then why, when a tanker rips open, dont barells spill out and bob around in the ocean? hmmmm?

 

I was watched Studio B with Shepard Smith this afternoon. He was ontop of Interstate 10 with obviously thousands of people just standing there not knowing where to go. He found a police officer ontop of the interstate video taping the water and so froth. He asked the police officer, where should these people go, is anyone coming for them? He would not say anything, the policeman just kept walking like no one was on that bridge.

A little later on in the program he had the spokeman on for the Louisiana State Police. She was telling Shepard that they are telling these people where to go and what not. Shepard tells her flat out, he's been there since 2 in the morning, these people are like 200 - 300 yards from the Superdome but are suspended up in the air. No one has come to instruct them on where to go since Shep had arrived 13 hours before his show. There was the sole police officer but he did nothing but video tape the water and refuse to talk. Shepard Smith basically said, you'll have someone out here right? He did not give her a chance to go through the regular, we're doing the best we can and that's all we can do.

He repeated where they were quite a few times, trying to get the police to take a little bit of attention. Interstate 10 at Exit 235, please send someone to help these people. These people have been sitting ontop of this interstate pass for two days with no water and no food. They had a doctor, the doctor says that these people are defenitly going to start suffering bad effects from this situation.

I really do not beleive that Shepard was trying to give the police a hard time. He is usually the first one to comend the police department for the amazing job that they are doing. He was just doing the best he could as a reporter to get them some attention so atleast a patrol car could come up there and start directing these people. These people have been in the sun with no food or water sleeping on an interstate over pass with no blankets or cushions. You can't just say something in a bullhorn real quick and expect them to just follow commands, they are dazed, confused and disoriented. I was just happy to see a reporter trying to get something done other then asking "how do you feel?"

- Chris

 

I'm not trying to get political here but but give me a break it's not like the guy was ignoring the situation. He can't win for losing when it comes to these disasters. This year he's being blamed for just sitting on vacation while the country has a disaster. Last year, he runs down to Florida to talk to the people and help out and is accused of pandering to the cameras. It's a catch 22 and I don't blame the guy for taking a vacation. If I had that much on my plate, I'd defenitly be going somewhere that I could think more clearly. Also, don't forget, it's not like when we take a vacation. He doesn't just drop all of his responsibilities and jobs. He's still working and there is nothing he can do in Washington that he can't do in Crawford.

Oh and not to be mean to those people but they were told to get out. I feel sorry that they are stuck there but come on, how many times did they tell these people how bad it would be. I don't know how many times they said on tv "if you need a ride, tell us we are running buses to evacuate people." All they had to do was call the New Orleans Police Department or New Orleans Fire & Rescue and let them know. No these people chose to ride it out and they are having to lay in the bed that they made for themselves.

You are going to use this some how to sit and bash the President of the United States for flying overhead? Have you also considered the fact that there are no airports near by that he could have landed at. The closest he could have probably landed would have probably been either Atlanta or Houston. Air Force One is a very large aircraft and it takes a very large runway and airport to take it in. You notice that the military is not sending in large cargo aircraft filled with supplies. No the only method right now of doing anything is by helocopter.

God bless the man, he couldn't catch a break if he saved a baby from a burning building.

- Chris

 

I wouldn't believe the media if they told me the earth is round. I know how they distort the news, fabricate news out of thin air and lie through their teeth. I don't have much respect anymore for the media. They often put a "spin" on what is happening. Tabloids are the lowest.

-1bigsteve (o:

 

Chris. . . .

Well said! (I snipped your post, just to emphasize your comments. I hope you don't mind.) You hit the nail right on the head!! 100%!

Keith

 

I know what you mean. Chris Matthews on MSNBC was asking can Katrina be blamed on global warming, like the tsunami last year. The science reporter had to correct him and state the tsunami was caused by an earthquake, not weather. Of course they would not bring up the fact that these severe hurricane seasons come in cycles, just like many other weather phenomenon. The last group of severe hurricane seasons were during the 50s and 60s. During the 70s, 80s and early 90s, we had less severe than average hurricane seasons.

 

As for those who were warned to leave, I heard (from the media) that quite a few of the ones that are there now, couldn't because of either financial reasons or there were too may of them to be bused out.

They also mentioned that 30-40 % of the poor are on G.A.

Weather that has any bearing on why so many stayed behind, I don't know.

I don't think anybody knew that this tragedy was going to be this catastrophic.