It may not have qualified as true breaking news, but the new media and digital technologies showed once again Monday how they are breaking traditional news rules, thanks to a spur-of-the-moment post on Twitter from an ABC News anchor involving President Barack Obama. ABC “Nightline” anchor Terry Moran and some network colleagues were monitoring a CNBC feed at the time; the two networks share a fiber optic line, and CNBC’s John Harwood was preparing to interview President Obama.
Seriously, this is what Terry Moran, ABC News Nightline reporter, tweets? How embarrassing. A guy with his kind of statue as a journalist in America . . . somehow, even in a fleeting moment . . . thinks that the president calling Kanye West a jackass is news?
That's just sad. For several reasons. First, it's not even news. I mean really, is saying that the sky is blue news? It's not. Second, the guy is listening in on the CNBC feed and thinks that tweeting based on that act is acceptable? Maybe, if there was something of supreme national importance, maybe, ok, tweet the eavesdropping news for the greater good.
But still, I refuse to buy the notion that just because everyone has a cell phone that anybody needs to stop saying the sky is blue or talking like real people.
There's plenty of skills good journalists should have, sound news judgement being a good first one, but discretion should be near the top, too. So yeah, are you going to trust a guy who tweets "Pres. Obama just called Kanye West a 'jackass' for his outburst at VMAs when Taylor Swift won. Now THAT'S presidential."?
Seriously, is this the kind of journalist we want on TV?
If there's anything newsworthy about President Obama's comment, it's that he's moderately aware of what's going on with popular culture. I gotta hope that most journalists would be pleasantly surprised for a moment and then turn their attention back to more pressing topics.
Loading ...
Taking Back the Tweet: ABC, Obama and the Jackass
Posted by: Renay San Miguel September 16, 2009 01:28 PMIt may not have qualified as true breaking news, but the new media and digital technologies showed once again Monday how they are breaking traditional news rules, thanks to a spur-of-the-moment post on Twitter from an ABC News anchor involving President Barack Obama. ABC “Nightline” anchor Terry Moran and some network colleagues were monitoring a CNBC feed at the time; the two networks share a fiber optic line, and CNBC’s John Harwood was preparing to interview President Obama.
That's just sad. For several reasons. First, it's not even news. I mean really, is saying that the sky is blue news? It's not. Second, the guy is listening in on the CNBC feed and thinks that tweeting based on that act is acceptable? Maybe, if there was something of supreme national importance, maybe, ok, tweet the eavesdropping news for the greater good.
But still, I refuse to buy the notion that just because everyone has a cell phone that anybody needs to stop saying the sky is blue or talking like real people.
There's plenty of skills good journalists should have, sound news judgement being a good first one, but discretion should be near the top, too. So yeah, are you going to trust a guy who tweets "Pres. Obama just called Kanye West a 'jackass' for his outburst at VMAs when Taylor Swift won. Now THAT'S presidential."?
Seriously, is this the kind of journalist we want on TV?
If there's anything newsworthy about President Obama's comment, it's that he's moderately aware of what's going on with popular culture. I gotta hope that most journalists would be pleasantly surprised for a moment and then turn their attention back to more pressing topics.