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Fire coverage thread
- Thread starter crainbebo
- Start date
Seeing reports of the Tyler Fire in Riverside County that started overnight in Coachella. Hope our moderator @DavidEduardo is out of harm's way from that one.
I have relatives in LA - hope they won't have to evacuate. Stay safe, everyone!
The fire in Coachella is now 50% contained.
Radio coverage on KNX and KFI:
www.insideradio.com
KFI Los Angeles Provides 'Round The Clock' Coverage Of Wildfire Battle.
KFI Los Angeles’s coverage of the raging wildfires in the Los Angeles suburbs is another example of the power of AM radio. The station had one of the very first
Interesting how the article is only focused on KFI, and not the KNX coverage, which has also been excellent. Was it simply to prove the author's point made in the first paragraph.... another example of the power of AM radio.Radio coverage on KNX and KFI:
KFI Los Angeles Provides 'Round The Clock' Coverage Of Wildfire Battle.
KFI Los Angeles’s coverage of the raging wildfires in the Los Angeles suburbs is another example of the power of AM radio. The station had one of the very first
I am out of town and have a large client right in the Palisades fire area, so I watched the live YouTube feeds of (mostly) KNBC, KTLA and KCAL/KCBS very intently for many hours.Radio coverage on KNX and KFI:
KFI Los Angeles Provides 'Round The Clock' Coverage Of Wildfire Battle.
KFI Los Angeles’s coverage of the raging wildfires in the Los Angeles suburbs is another example of the power of AM radio. The station had one of the very first
Overall, the coverage was quite good; everyone doing their best and some very brave on-site reporters.
Only one complaint - These reporters are WAY too brave. You don't need to be 10 feet away from the fire to report on it. The last thing we need is dead reporters because they stayed on too long. I saw several instances where the fire departments left the scene and the reporters still stay, saying things like "I see flames in every direction, north, south, east, and west" while deadly embers are flying past them on screen. That is your clue ma'am, GET OUT and save yourself and your camera crew!
We all want the best information possible, and you are an absolute professional and want to provide it, I get it. But there is a freaking INFERNO just behind you; it is OK to move off a few blocks and report (relatively) safely from there, and then move again if necessary. It really will not detract from your reporting. Really.
I watched one of NBC LA reporters doing a live report with no mask on as he drove through smoke and flames on both sides of the road saying he could smell the burning rubber from whatever building was on fire next to him.
Which makes you wonder, whose decision is it to take the risk? The news director, the reporter? Im sure the reporter doesn't want to risk their health or life just to be close as possible to the flames. Maybe, the pressure of trying to land the best coverage, no matter what.
The reporters I've worked with typically choose to do this kind of reporting. They see danger as what they do.
If one is wondering why news crews are taking the risks to get the best shots over this fire. Some of it is that they have to compete against stringers providing AP and Reuters with dramatic shots of the wildfire which in turn gets viewers to their place.
Noticed last night listening online to KPCC (LAist 89.3), they were simulcasting KCAL News coverage.
I was surprised the fire crews didn’t make the reporter I saw on ABC 7 last night, move away from the fire right behind her.
It’s so surreal here. Please stay safe, heed directives and avoid areas affected.
It wouldn't surprise me if reporters were pulled back at some point due to concerns over life safety. No story is worth dying for.
The reports are sending chills down my spine. The same thing could very easily have happened in Oakland when I lived there. Whenever Diablo winds, our equivalent of Santa Ana winds, kicked up, our fear ramped up as well. In 1991, Oakland came very close to having a fire that would have gone all the way to the bay; instead, it was limited to the hills, but many houses were still destroyed and people died. It's also not just fire; it's smoke and poor air quality, which affect wide areas and many more people. Thus fire danger was a big factor in our move to Colorado.
The LA fires also are likely to destroy the California home insurance market. That'll affect much of the state.
Sending best wishes to those who are in danger or who have lost their homes and businesses, and hope that the fires can be contained soon.
The LA fires also are likely to destroy the California home insurance market. That'll affect much of the state.
Sending best wishes to those who are in danger or who have lost their homes and businesses, and hope that the fires can be contained soon.
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I think part of it is just plain competition. A lot of times you will see multiple stations' trucks parked within a hundred yards of each other at the same overly-dangerous reporting position. I think none of them wants to be the first to say, "It's too dangerous for us, let's bug out" and let the other two or three stations maintain the position (and possibly scoop us).
Actually, that has already been taken care of thanks to the wondrous state leadership we have.
There is that, and, from experience, I know that there are some reporters who really get amped up by dangerous situations. That's where management has a role.
I was gung-ho and hypercompetitive once myself. Later, after my career shift and toward the end of my new career, I worked for a big utility. Utility work in the field can be dangerous, and employees hurt or killed, through no fault of their own. The first time I saw a company email about someone getting killed on the job, it really made me consider the value of life. One of the company's executives started every meeting with this: "my first job is to make sure you get home tonight". It makes you think.
The choice has been to pay more in premiums or go to the Fair Plan and its reduced levels of coverage. Nobody wants to pay more in premiums and nobody wants to go to the Fair Plan. Political leadership responds to imperatives from their constituents. Insurance executives in Illinois or wherever are not their constituents.
In any event, it's going to get worse. The California Earthquake Authority is not great to deal with but is probably the model for what happens next with fire insurance in the state.
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