My Hopes for Certain Broadcasters This Thursday (September 11th)

[Mario500]

I hope news broadcasters and other broadcasters specialized in dealing with news and public affairs do not use this Thursday to remind their audiences about the series of tragedies that occurred in New York, New York, Arlington, Virginia, and Shanksville, Pennsylvania on the calendar date for this Thursday back in 2001. I also hope they would not use the calendar date in reference to the tragedies this Thursday or any day before or after this Thursday because no calendar date should be overshadowed by tragedy from a particular time.

I'm not very optimistic about the possibility of these broadcasters treating this Thursday like any new Thursday, though, which is why I have no plans to watch certain TV and radio news and discussion programs this Thursday. I may not even watch any sports programs this Thursday due to the possibility of their having references to the tragedies.

 

[newsmark]

Why would you expect a news organization NOT to mention the biggest, most tragic event in at least 40 years on the anniversary it happened?

Sure, it's depressing. But it's important to have the reminder, at least of the people who died, much like we have Memorial Day each year.

 

[JeeperOne]

I would expect the news outlets to mention it & maybe run some type of special on it BUT I think most of the special programming devoted to 9/11 will likely go to History & AHC & perhaps C-SPAN with the rest of it MAYBE going to such places as A&E

The sports outlets will likely mention the impact it had on sports (Though with SNF being in Denver AT THE SAME STADIUM last night just as MNF was here THE NIGHT BEFORE 9/11 back in 2001 & NBC didn't even bring it up), it'll likely not go past a blurb if anything at all.....

In short, don't expect anything remotely close to the spectacle of 2011. If that's what you're expecting, you may as well either keep the TV off or make it a Roku night.....

JMO.....

Cheers & 73

 

[landtuna]

When I was growing up December 7, 1941 was the biggest, and closest, tragedy to the American people and we were reminded of it in the news and on specials produced on radio and TV. If you were sitting in a history class in school, no matter what age, you would have been reminded. Now days you ask anyone under 30 what the significance of that date is and they most likely haven't got a clue. I suppose that is natural as the impact of that date does fade but it is important to remember and understand the dates that have significantly affected each and every one of us.

 

[ixnay]

When I was growing up December 7, 1941 was the biggest, and closest, tragedy to the American people and we were reminded of it in the news and on specials produced on radio and TV.

I remember attending a Philadelphia Eagles NFL game at the Vet on 12.07.1975 (the 34th anniversary [also a Sunday]; I was 14yo) and there being a moment of silence for PH before the game.

ixnay

 

[JeffM]

I'm sure there will be, as there should be, some kind of coverage by the networks and news channels; though I'm sure there will not be the kind of attention that would be paid on a "landmark" anniversary, i.e. five years, ten years, etc. 2016 will be the 15-year anniversary, so that will probably bring heavier coverage.

 

[Mario500]

I hope the broadcasters who were born on the eleventh day of September (including Barbara Starr of CNN, Maria Bartiromo of the FOX Business Network, and Tim Camp of WZEW-FM and WNSP-FM in the radio market for Mobile, Alabama) do not let their memories of the tragedies and the way the eleventh day of September was used in reference to them make them feel they should not feel happy this Thursday or make them wish they had not been born on the eleventh day of September (if every person were to feel this way, none of us would be having birthday celebrations since there had been tragedies on every calendar date).

 

[Avid Listener]

Personally, I hope every broadcaster and other media figure responsible for mass communications in the nation goes all out to remind all Americans what was done to our country by terrorists back in 2001, and reminds us that the war against all nations and organized groups of people who use terrorism to further their goals is still on. It saddens me that too many Americans want to bury their heads in the sand and pretend that 9/11/01 never happened. It bothers me that there aren't hundreds of Americans surrounding the White House demanding that the golfer-in-chief doesn't take strong, decisive action against the ragheads in ISIS who are beheading Americans. It saddens me that there aren't hundreds or even thousands of Americans demanding that our porous borders aren't closed down to prevent those same ISIS terrorists from mingling with the Mexicans as they both illegally invade our nation.

We have a major election coming up, the 2014 midterms. The more silent the media is about the real problems facing our nation, the better the chance that people will stay home on election day, which means more incumbents will get re-elected and nothing will change.

 

[firepoint525]

I'm sure there will be, as there should be, some kind of coverage by the networks and news channels; though I'm sure there will not be the kind of attention that would be paid on a "landmark" anniversary, i.e. five years, ten years, etc. 2016 will be the 15-year anniversary, so that will probably bring heavier coverage.

I remember being annoyed that there was no local news on 9-11-11, the 10th anniversary of 9-11-01. It was a Sunday morning, and all local news was pre-empted by network coverage of the anniversary. The only problem was, that early in the morning, nothing much was happening yet. The 15th anniversary, 9-11-16, will also fall on a Sunday.

 

[FredLeonard]

I hope they WON'T - but undoubtedly they WILL. Newsies are lemmings and they always trot out anniversary stories because they always have done anniversary stories, so they think anniversary stories are the thing to do. Newsies will go to any length to avoid having to think too much, so they fall back on routine.

Too bad the newsies don't do anything useful with this occasion, like helping people understand why the world hates this country, and what this country has done to deserve it. But then, the audience doesn't want to think too much either.

Coming up: Anniversaries of the Kennedy assassination, the end of World War I, Pearl Harbor. No shortage of anniversaries. A great shortage of any reporting to provide historical insight.

Tonight's anniversary coverage:
On The Nightly News with Brian Williams - anniversary of the founding of the National Broadcasting Company in 1926.
On The Evening News with Scott Pelley - anniversary of Elvis' first appearance on CBS' The Ed Sullivan Show.

 

[umfan]

The events of that day continue to reverberate. It's appropriate and newsworthy to continue to note its importance.

 

[Avid Listener]

I hope that all stations keep reminding everyone of the tragic sneak attack on our nation on this day in 2001, and that the same group of people who did that back then are still engaging in acts of barbarism against us today.

 

[FredLeonard]

Of course, they will. Newsies are so predictable. Besides, wars are good for ratings. They will follow the same pattern they did a decade ago (and many times before): Cheerleading Phase. Muted Support The Troops Phase. Questioning Phase. Investigation Phase. Cheerleaders' Remorse Phase.

Funny how righties hate taxes but they are so willing to give money to the military. Other NATO countries spend less than one per cent of GDP on the military, so they have all sorts of money for universal health care, education and ways to make life better for people who don't own stock in defense industries.

Funny thing how the Islamic religious right is no different than the US religious right. Only the US religious right can't get away with beheadings, but they'd do it if they could.

"Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel." - Samuel Johnson

 

[dhett]

Funny thing how the Islamic religious right is no different than the US religious right. Only the US religious right can't get away with beheadings, but they'd do it if they could.

Really? Would you care to provide evidence to back up that smear?

 

[vchimpanzee]

When I was growing up December 7, 1941 was the biggest, and closest, tragedy to the American people and we were reminded of it in the news and on specials produced on radio and TV. If you were sitting in a history class in school, no matter what age, you would have been reminded. Now days you ask anyone under 30 what the significance of that date is and they most likely haven't got a clue. I suppose that is natural as the impact of that date does fade but it is important to remember and understand the dates that have significantly affected each and every one of us.

This isn't TV, but Mike Huckabee, in his three-minute radio commentaries that have replaced Paul Harvey on some stations, said there are kids not old enough to remember what happened. This is bad because in the future, they're going to treat the day like any other day and people won't remember that they have to be vigilant.

September 12 is a good day to attack us, he said, because we'll let our guard down after being very cautious on the day itself.

 

[Morgan Wick]

Xenophobia: Part of the American Tradition since 1776.

 

[Avid Listener]

Xenophobia: Part of the American Tradition since 1776.

Feelings of hatred towards people who are doing their level best to murder you is not "Xenophobia". It's just good common sense.

 

[landtuna]

Really? Would you care to provide evidence to back up that smear?

Perhaps Freddie was being a bit superlative but he is close to the truth....at least historically. Although Islam hasn't changed significantly over the past few hundred years the far right versions of Christianity have. They no longer burn witches at the stake or murder other religious sects because of differing beliefs - but they once did and not too long ago. So-called Christians participated in the wholesale slaughter of indigenous Americans (Indians). So-called Christians persecuted non-believers, Mormons and Jews. So-called Christians lynched Blacks, enslaved them and treated them as property. 100 years ago women were considered chattel property and could not vote in a so-called democratic country. And more recently a major Christian denomination has participated in a huge cover-up of sexual misdeeds by its own clergy.

Beheading and stoning are two of the most heinous acts we see in Muslim cultures but our own Christian culture is not too far removed from equally distasteful acts.

 

[Morgan Wick]

Feelings of hatred towards people who are doing their level best to murder you is not "Xenophobia". It's just good common sense.

Thinking that everyone who isn't already American (or at least Western - and some who are) is "doing their level best to murder you", including people who are just heeding the Statue of Liberty's command to "give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free", isn't "good common sense", it's paranoia at best. When it comes without serious consideration of why they might be "doing their level best to murder you" beyond "they hate us for our freedoms", it becomes outright foolishness.

Seriously, is there any plausible reason to think that if ISIS were to attack American home soil they'd do so by "mingling with the Mexicans as they both illegally invade our nation" through "our porous borders" rather than using a plane like, oh, say, the September 11th terrorists did?

 

[FredLeonard]

The media make such a point of being "fair and balanced," "impartial," "unbiased" and "objective." Whether they are or not is open to debate. But they clearly don't even try to look unbiased when "reporting" foreign affairs - especially if armed conflict is involved. It's all "us versus them." ISIS is painted as evil, like comic book super-villains. Mostly, they are people with their own ideas, viewpoints and theology, trying to live their lives like anybody else. They feel they've got a grievance but the media never make any attempt to help us understand it - let alone to "walk a mile in their shoes."

Xenophobia is European tradition - going back more than 2,000 years. It's from classical Greek meaning fear of strangers or foreigners. It was coined to describe how some Greeks felt about Persians (now Iranians). Hatred of Middle Easterners has been going on a long time. And to them, we are Europeans. Just as we don't make any distinction between various Middle Eastern ethnic groups, to them all Westerners are the same.

During the 700 years Muslims ruled what's now Spain, they practiced religious tolerance for Christians and Jews. But when Christians took power, the first thing did was set up the Inquisition and start killing Jews, Muslims and heretics - as well as going to the New World to kill Indians (after forced conversions to make it OK to kill them).