Tag Archives: media coverage

media news

Crisis producing a whole new category of hero

I am more than willing to admit that I do not like watching all this televised coverage of the coronavirus pandemic.

It is non-stop, relentless and unforgiving. The news is mostly grim and it frightens me as I think of my family and wondering if they’re safe from the killer disease.

Now, is the entire coverage depressing and frightening? No. Much of it also is uplifting. I refer to the feel-good stories we get to see on TV or read in newspapers or online. They tell us about heroes and the truly magnificent heroic acts they are performing.

We need to effectively re-establish the definition of “hero.” The term no longer applies just to military personnel who thrust themselves into harm’s way; they aren’t just firefighters who rush into burning buildings to rescue people caught in the flames; or police officers who stop a criminal from inflicting havoc on a community.

Heroes now include doctors and nurses who are tending to infected patients. They work in nursing homes and assisted living centers tending to elderly residents who are highly vulnerable to the ravages of this disease. They are grocery vendors who deliver food to retail outlets to ensure that residents can purchase the goods they need just to get through the day or the week. Heroes are ambulance drivers, paramedics and utility workers who expose themselves to those in need … who well might be infected with the disease.

I also want to point out that the media that keep getting panned unfairly for the coverage they provide. We hear from those in the conservative media that their “mainstream media” colleagues are overhyping the danger being delivered by the virus.

The media that get vilified unjustly also are telling us regularly about the heroes among us. The media are reporting throughout the day the stories we want to hear, we want to see and about which we want to read. They are giving proper praise to those who are risking their lives to save the lives of others.

Although I am weary of the onslaught of grim news, I am strengthened by news of another sort. The heroes make me humble and proud of the work they are doing to serve all of our communities.

media news, medical news

Pandemic coverage = failed prevention policy

Something occurred to me this week when I began reading the Dallas Morning News that my carrier tossed onto my driveway.

The newspaper’s front page story count was devoted totally to the coronavirus pandemic. Then I looked at some of the inside pages. Multiple pages contained full coverage of the pandemic. The editorial page also had many letters to the editor and opinion columns devoted to the pandemic.

Then the light bulb flashed on: When have we ever witnessed such wall-to-wall, 24/7, nonstop, relentless coverage of a single issue? I guess the last issue that did that occurred on Sept. 11, 2001. That’s how big this pandemic has become.

Why mention this? Well, I also remember earlier this year when Donald Trump was downplaying the onset of the virus that he was highly critical of previous administrations’ efforts at handling earlier health crises. He mentioned the Ebola virus and the H1N1 outbreaks that dogged the Obama administration. He exerted a bit of effort to tell us that in his view President Obama did a lousy job of corralling those crises.

OK, but … did those crises dominate the media coverage — not to mention the top of everyone’s awareness — the way this pandemic has done? No. They didn’t.

What does that tell me? It tells me that those crises either weren’t as widespread as the coronavirus pandemic has become and that the Obama administration did a good job of stemming their impact on the population.

It also symbolizes and illustrates one of the fundamental points that Trump critics — such as yours truly — have made all along, which is that Donald Trump has fumbled bigly in organizing his administration’s response to the crisis.

I have to circle back to something Dr. Anthony Fauci said, which was that had there been a concerted early effort to “mitigate” the effects of the disease that we wouldn’t be in the pickle we’re in at this moment.

So, here we are … with a disease overwhelming the media’s daily coverage of the news of the day. That, I submit, is a consequence of an inept governmental response.

International news

Meghan, Harry provide welcome diversion

I don’t pretend to be the source of all original thoughts — or even more than just a few of them — but this one occurred to me this morning.

I awoke today in time to catch the final few minutes on TV of the royal wedding of Prince Harry to Meghan Markle, the American woman whose life has just changed forever and ever.

What’s more, I was struck by the outpouring of love not only from the hundreds of thousands of spectators lining the parade route from Windsor Castle, but also from the commentators who were reporting on the festivities.

They seemed genuinely thrilled to be there. These news anchors who spend much of their waking hours reporting at home on matters that bring sadness instead of joy were relishing the moment of marital bliss.

Yes, our hearts are heavy on this side of The Pond over news of another school shooting, this time near Galveston, Texas. But there seems to be a genuine love for these two young people who have become betrothed for “as long as they both shall live.” That’s the way it’s supposed to work, yes? It didn’t work out for Harry’s parents, or for his Uncle Andrew and his former wife.

Yet we wish nothing but eternal happiness for these two young people and my sense is that the joy from the former Colonies is as real and intense as it is in the United Kingdom.

We’re sick of the silliness, the scandal, the rancor, the conflict that dominates our news cycles here. I sense a desire to enjoy the moment and perhaps to live it vicariously — if only for a day or maybe two — as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex begin their new life together.

They’ll do good work, because that’s what British royal couples are asked to do.

Let’s enjoy the moment together for as long as we can. The nonsense here at home awaits as soon as the British royal glow fades.