You Call This News?

A few weeks ago I sent my first email to a news agency: Fox News. Now, I have never really been a huge fan of the network in large part due to Bill O’Reilly and Hannity & Colmes. Their Republican views do not interest me one bit. Recently, though, I felt that the news network crossed the line. I was shocked to learn that they scheduled an on air interview with O.J. Simpson after he wrote a book entitled: If I Did It, Here’s How It Happened. Not only did Simpson get paid for the book and essentially for the murders that took place 12 years ago, but Fox was also re-living the tragedy. The fact that they were willing to allow Simpson T.V. time to talk about the murders, they capitalized on a horrible tragedy. Plus, the victims’ families had to re-live their loss once again. So, I sent Fox News an email saying that they were one of the reasons why I lost faith in good journalism. Fortunately, Fox came to their senses and pulled the plug on the interview. Not because of my email. I am sure that they were flooded with mail written by outraged citizens.
The Simpson saga is just one example of how much the news media needs to improve. If it is not Simpson, the main stories are the latest happenings with Britney (most recently, her lack of undergarments) and the big TomKat wedding. Yeah, that’s the latest trend now, re-naming celebrity couples.
What about the economy or the war on terror? I chuckle when I write this because I am thinking of comedian Chris Rock’s “Never Scared” HBO special when he says that all of the celebrity news that is out there is just a trick by President Bush to get people’s mind off the war. As an example, Rock jokingly says Bush is the one that brought that girl up to Kobe Bryant’s room.
Do not get me wrong. I enjoy watching the entertainment shows like “Access Hollywood” once in awhile (it used to be quite often) but it has gotten to the point where it has become ridiculous. I am reminded of the 1990’s when photographers/reporters were camped in front of the late John F. Kennedy Jr.’s apartment in New York waiting for him to come home from work. His response: “Slow news day?” We as a society are fascinated with icons like him. I am fascinated with celebrities like that and I like to read about their lives. Professor Robert Entman’s 1990 book entitled: Democracy Without Citizens: Media and the Decay of American Politics, discusses this very issue. Entman feels that the public wants entertainment rather than being informed on serious issues. I agree with that notion because entertainment is less boring than politics, which is probably why news programs have an entertainment segment after the sports and weather segments. However, I think that there should be a little less gossip and more discussion on serious issues.
As long as people continue to watch the gossip and ratings go up, then I doubt the media will change anytime soon. After 9/11, the news media did seem to care more about reporting on the serious stories and the war on terror. I just hope that it does not take another tragedy for the media to improve their journalistic integrity.