So I, along with nearly everyone else I know, flipped through smorgasboard of cable news pontification last night concerning yesterday's mass shooting at Virginia Tech University. I stopped at CNN which was broadcasting a press conference with Tech's Chief of Police and President. The Chief (admirably in my humble opinion) tried to retain his composure as he answered a barrage of vague and inappropriate questions. He was trying to counter the rumor mongering encouraged by the 24 hour cable news The subtext through this press conference is a media constructed image of the Tech administration as a bunch of bumbling backwoods Gomer Pyle's. Several reporters framed questions to suggest that perhaps a dangerous gunman is still on the loose. Each time a question of that sort came up, the Chief unambigiously replied, "no, we don't believe there is a shooter on the loose."
10 minutes after the press conference, CNN's latest dimwit anchor came on proclaiming, "the latest press conference leaves us with more questions than answers." Yet the only questions to be raised are those that the media figures are manufacturing themselves. Ms. Zahn proceeded to ask the twenty-something twinkie reporter dispatched to Blacksburg to file reports on location (though there is little to be gleaned from the location) if "the administration faces greater liability now?" How would Ms. Twinkie know this? Of course Twinkie doesn't let lack of substantive fact to temper her conjecture... "Well as you saw Paula, there are many questions now..." Ugh... Yeah, questions that are being raised unencumbered by the thought process. Why can't they let the investigators do their job, get the facts, and then ask intelligent questions based on those facts?
Has television news always been this bad?
