Controversy over networks giving out false information during Boston Bombings

[Mark Giardina]

Big debate over the weekend on all of the TV talkfests about how the networks and newspapers screwed up when it came to providing correct information pertaining to the bombings and arrest of the 19 year old suspect.

My take is that some networks depended on 'sources' who didn't have all of the correct information. On the other hand some networks and papers are still trying to be "the first" to report a story.....even if the report is false.

Twitter had more accurate information from people at the scene of the arrest than the networks.

Finally......Will someone please tell Wolf Blitzer to stop asking the same damn questions over and over again? Geesh this guy is a broken record when it comes to reporting on a story. One half hour listening to him repeating himself forced me to turn the channel to another network.

 

[TheBigA]

My take is that some networks depended on 'sources' who didn't have all of the correct information. On the other hand some networks and papers are still trying to be "the first" to report a story.....even if the report is false.

Hard to blame the reporting when the official story itself changed a few times. At one point, the Police were saying the bombers robbed a 7-11 convenience store. It wasn't until later the next day when they changed their story. The two were caught on video leaving the store, but they weren't involved in the robbery.

That's the way things go in an active news story. I think they did as good a job as can be expected, given the situation. All of the correct information still isn't known. My problem is with all the Congressmen in Washington commenting on a situation based simply on news reports. Especially considering none of them are from the affected state. I find all that to be irresponsible.

 

[FredLeonard]

I agree, Mark. In fact I hear way too many statements based on unnamed and unspecified "officials." I even hear other statements based on "current thinking." What officials? Whose current thinking? If people are only willing to speak off the record say that and provide some idea where the information comes from. A local cop? FBI? FEMA? DA? Politician? What? It seems like these people are so eager to have something (that sounds good to say), they will say anything. As we've seen, what they are doing is dishing out crap. I suspect "current thinking" is what you get when the newsies start talking to each other.

In a way, things were a lot better when we waited for the morning paper to get details, accurate details.

 

[kingskip]

Finally......Will someone please tell Wolf Blitzer to stop asking the same damn questions over and over again? Geesh this guy is a broken record when it comes to reporting on a story. One half hour listening to him repeating himself forced me to turn the channel to another network.

He shouldn't even be reporting on this story. Look at how bad he did on Jeopardy 4 years ago. He missed so many simple questions and ended the Double Jeopardy round with negative -$4600 but they gave him an even $1000 since he was a celebrity contestant. He'd probably get the facts wrong on the Boston story as well.

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

In a way, things were a lot better when we waited for the morning paper to get details, accurate details.

Yes, things were a lot better when they didn't come on the air with information that "weather people" whoever they are, think we might see some bad weather HERE, but it is possible it will be over THERE just a bit further. Oh how I long for the good old days when those of us who didn't get blown away last night can read in the paper that our family member across town are blown away and dead. We certainly wouldn't want flaky media causing us to get out of bed and go wait it out in the hallway closet.

Yes, things were a lot better back when they didn't break into news and tell us two wild men are barrelling through town shooting it out with the police. I certainly don't want to go out in the front yard and tell the kids to come inside until thinks calm down. I'd rather pick up the paper in the morning and read that my childlren are laying out in the front yard, dead!

Take it from me. Those good ol' days aren't always everything they were cracked up to be.

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

Now, if I can get my tongue out of my cheek-

I heard one somebody I hope got their hiney chewed in staff meeting today. Someone on NPR was trying to explain the tension over Miranda Rights vs. no Miranda rights or something, and the eminent danger exception, ... seeing as how officials are anxious to question the survivor about his trip to Russia last year.

What was the little sign that used to ding as it flashed on the pinball machine? T I L T

 

[landtuna]

... seeing as how officials are anxious to question the survivor about his trip to Russia last year.

It was the older brother, the dead one, that made the trip to his homeland.

 

[JeeperOne]

I was just thinking (Yeah I know - scary thought but still ;D ). If you relocate to somewhere else like say.....Here in Denver & relate it to recent events (And, heaven forbid, future events) that happened outside of the I-95 corridor North of the Carolinas, we would have this.....

WHO did the networks rely on in the initial moments after the Aurora Theatre shooting while THEIR OWN boots were still in the air?

WHO do you think the networks would rely on IF (Heaven forbid of course) those bombs were detonated at Coors Field during the Mets-Rockies that night if the game wasn't snowed out?

WHO do you think the networks would rely on IF (Again heaven forbid of course) those bombs were detonated at the Boulder Bolder Marathon in Boulder, CO next month?

The answer to ALL of those is LOCAL REPORTERS !!!

Why? Because they know THE LAY OF THE LAND !!! They know THE PEOPLE !!! They know WHO TO TALK TO !!! They know WHO IS A CREDIBLE SOURCE & WHO IS NOT A CREDIBLE SOURCE !!! The network robots will talk to ANYBODY just to please the brass (Whose ONLY interest is in RATING & REVENUE - NOT GETTING THE FACTS RIGHT !!!)

Sure even local stations make mistakes. BUT unlike the networks, they're also quick to CORRECT THEMSELVES when they do. The networks (all of them - Including MSNBC) are too driven by their corporate agenda to even think of doing this (Though NBC & MSNBC seemed to show more restraint than Fox News & WAY more restraint than CNN last week)

Did Ed Ansin wanna give NBC the finger? I'm sure he did. But it was rather for him to do when NBC & MSNBC turned to WHDH after that incident involving NECN

Are the lessons to be learned from this? Of course there are. Those lessons will bring the networks back to what worked during the Aurora Theatre shooting & even after the Sandy Hook tragedy (Where the networks had boots on the ground within an hour or so thanks to the proximity to NYC)

JMO though.....

Thoughts?

Cheers & 73 ;D

 

[JeeperOne]

It was the older brother, the dead one, that made the trip to his homeland.

But you can bet YOUR BOTTOM $$$ that at least ONE of the networks got THAT wrong

Cheers & 73 ;D

 

[FredLeonard]

In a way, things were a lot better when we waited for the morning paper to get details, accurate details.

Yes, things were a lot better when they didn't come on the air with information that "weather people" whoever they are, think we might see some bad weather HERE, but it is possible it will be over THERE just a bit further. Oh how I long for the good old days when those of us who didn't get blown away last night can read in the paper that our family member across town are blown away and dead. We certainly wouldn't want flaky media causing us to get out of bed and go wait it out in the hallway closet.

Yes, things were a lot better back when they didn't break into news and tell us two wild men are barrelling through town shooting it out with the police. I certainly don't want to go out in the front yard and tell the kids to come inside until thinks calm down. I'd rather pick up the paper in the morning and read that my childlren are laying out in the front yard, dead!

Take it from me. Those good ol' days aren't always everything they were cracked up to be.

Now, if I may put my tongue in my cheek: Very little of the air time devoted to this story last week, an infinitesimal part, was devoted two wild men shooting up the neighborhood kind of information. Outside of the Boston market, none of it was. NPR's On The Media described it as "terrorism porn." It was not essential to any viewer's health and safety. It was, as noted, repetition, speculation and unfounded rumor. And it happened because TV and radio have to fill time when they really don't know what the <bleep> is going on. So, back in the day, a radio bulletin would tell you about the guys with a gun. And then real reporters, newspaper men and not blow dried mic holders, could take the time to sort things out, and get their facts right.

The written word is the best way to convey information. Always has been, always will be. And except for maps and Playboy centerfolds, a picture is not worth much of anything.

 

[TheBigA]

The written word is the best way to convey information. Always has been, always will be. And except for maps and Playboy centerfolds, a picture is not worth much of anything.

Depends on if you're in the business of conveying information, or attracting an audience. Broadcasting does a little of both. Nothing wrong with either. It's a free country. Thanks to broadcasting, the pictures of the suspects were transmitted quickly to the area population. That's what triggered the chain of events that led to the capture of one of them.

 

[FredLeonard]

The written word is the best way to convey information. Always has been, always will be. And except for maps and Playboy centerfolds, a picture is not worth much of anything.

Depends on if you're in the business of conveying information, or attracting an audience. Broadcasting does a little of both. Nothing wrong with either. It's a free country. Thanks to broadcasting, the pictures of the suspects were transmitted quickly to the area population. That's what triggered the chain of events that led to the capture of one of them.

As one observer said, thanks to those pictures the media were identifying as the culprit anybody with dark skin and a backpack. Those pictures led to a lot of mis-identification. Thus consequences could have been as tragic as the original event. And the chain of events that to the capture of one of them was some guy going out to check his boat. Pictures had little or nothing to do with it.

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

... seeing as how officials are anxious to question the survivor about his trip to Russia last year.

It was the older brother, the dead one, that made the trip to his homeland.

THAT was my point!!!! TILT. Somebody should have had a rough time in today's staff meeting explaining that "hair ball" of a news edit!

 

[TheBigA]

As one observer said, thanks to those pictures the media were identifying as the culprit anybody with dark skin and a backpack.

Did you SEE the pictures? They were pretty clear. Clear enough that once they were released, the suspects realized they'd be recognized. That's why they were on the move Thursday night. At least, that's what the police are now saying. Every police offical, from the Boston Police, Watertown Police, and the FBI, has said the release of those pictures is what triggered the chain of events.

 

[FredLeonard]

As one observer said, thanks to those pictures the media were identifying as the culprit anybody with dark skin and a backpack.

Did you SEE the pictures? They were pretty clear. Clear enough that once they were released, the suspects realized they'd be recognized. That's why they were on the move Thursday night. At least, that's what the police are now saying. Every police offical, from the Boston Police, Watertown Police, and the FBI, has said the release of those pictures is what triggered the chain of events.

Of course, that's what the cops say. The cops have to justify releasing the pictures.

As a fan of public radio, you might want to listen to the program On The Media did on this topic this past weekend. http://www.onthemedia.org/2013/apr/19/

 

[Joseph_Gallant]

In a fast-moving story like this one, mistakes are bound to happen.

 

[OldNumber7]

Back to the start of this thread: As we also saw in the school shooting, there are people "unauthorized" to speak to the media who speak to the media anyway, and the media give them anonymity. Did it occur to the media that there's a reason why these folks are "unauthorized"?
Often in the first hours of a big story like this, the investigators who know real facts are too busy to be leaking stuff to the media. So clearly, the people who are doing the leaking are getting the info second-hand themselves.
I wonder sometimes if, internally, within their various agencies they aren't being set up by co-workers or bosses with bad info, so these bosses can figure out which of their colleagues they can and can't trust to keep a secret.

 

[FredLeonard]

In a fast-moving story like this one, mistakes are bound to happen.

Precisely. That's why the networks and local TV should not do this kind of "coverage."

 

[jfrancispastirchak]

Did you SEE the pictures? They were pretty clear. Clear enough that once they were released, the suspects realized they'd be recognized. That's why they were on the move Thursday night. At least, that's what the police are now saying. Every police offical, from the Boston Police, Watertown Police, and the FBI, has said the release of those pictures is what triggered the chain of events.

Of course, that's what the cops say. The cops have to justify releasing the pictures.

And the release of those pictures resulted in the capture of the surviving perp! That was the intention behind releasing those pics! Their strategy paid off! It worked! So the problem is?............

 

[jfrancispastirchak]

Depends on if you're in the business of conveying information, or attracting an audience. Broadcasting does a little of both. Nothing wrong with either. It's a free country. Thanks to broadcasting, the pictures of the suspects were transmitted quickly to the area population. That's what triggered the chain of events that led to the capture of one of them.

I can't top that. The so-called written word in today's world offers little more than capsule summaries and Monday morning armchair perspectives of news events like Boston. The broadcast media's on-going coverage, TV in the case of Boston, provided the viewership's assistance police relied on to end this mayhem.

In fairness to Fred's view, free of the manic stress heaped on broadcast reporters whose street presence delivers the play-by-play, newspaper reporters can offer more in-depth analysis of news events, TOMORROW. But that's a little like a reporter stepping out on the front porch to report that it rained overnight. I would have been more interested in watching the weather forecast the night before. I count on them to remind me to bring my umbrella to work, TOMORROW.