Live Car Accident Video From Local TV News

[Ben E Lou]

Boortz was just talking about this...

http://www.wwltv.com/cgi-bin/bi/video/wmPlayer.pl?title=www.wwltv.com/carax_0916.wmv

[Ben E Lou]

An oddity, and something disturbing:

1. the video is not from WWL tv, who is hosting it.
2. The guy and the cameraman stand there, rather than checking on the passengers. :mad:

[GrantDawg]

Bad link.

[Ben E Lou]

Boortz just announced the link on the radio. I'd imagine it is getting slammed right now.

[John Galt]

Link doesn't work for me either.

[Ben E Lou]

Yeah...it isn't working for me either. In fact the entire wwltv.com site looks to be down. Probably not a good idea for Boortz to announce a web link during the lunch hour. ;)

[digamma]

It worked for me. Very odd.

[vex]

DIdn't work for me.

[sachmo71]

Mine liked to a site with semi-nude girls and their boyfriends.

Are you the REAL Skydog, or is this a WigNifty situation?

[Masked]

Mine liked to a site with semi-nude girls and their boyfriends.

What do you expect from a New Orleans news station? Avoid the Mardi Gras section next time. http://dynamic2.gamespy.com/%7Efof/forums/images/smilies/smile.gif

[Neuqua]

Wow, the guy seems like he wants to get the story done first and foremost and doesn't even look like he wants to check up on the people in the car.

[sabotai]

Get Michael Powell on the phone! I heard the s-word!!!

In all seriousness, though, those guys as asshats for just standing there and not checking on the car.

[Arles]

"It looks like the lady is bleeding from her eyes, but let me give you some background on this intersection before I help her.." :rolleyes:

[cthomer5000]

unreal.

[Ben E Lou]

So, is this working for everyone now?

[duckman]

So, is this working for everyone now?
Yeah, it did for me. Total bullshit. :mad:

[Blackadar]

This accident reminds me of what I was taught in grade school.

Look both ways before crossing the street!

[cuervo72]

Robber: Alright fatso, out of the car.

Kramer: I want to capture this.

Robber: Come on! Gimme your wallet.

Victim: Don't shoot.

Jerry: Well, there goes the money for the lipo.

Elaine: See, the great thing about robbing a fat guy is it's an easy getaway. You know? They can't really chase ya!

George: He's actually doing him a favor. It's less money for him to buy food.

Robber: I want your wallet. Come on. Come on, come on.

Jerry: That's a shame. Alright, I'm gonna call NBC.

[bigdawg2003]

The reporter and cameraman will be arrested under the Good Samaratan law. It will be the worst news show ever.

[BigJohn&TheLions]

With the state of news and the way they talk down to the public, I'm surprised that they don't roll this repeatedly "Let's take one more look..." and then roll some b-roll of other traffic accidents.

Still, it won't play for me.

Reminds me of a GM OnStar commercial where a woman calls in an accident where her husband (who was driving next to her in a different car) went off the road and into a lake. She was crying and telling the OnStar person that the car went under the water. So she basically sat there on the phone watching her husband's car go under and didn't think he might need immediate help. What's funny is there is another commercial where a guy calls in a car going off the road into the lake. People are idiots.

[Senator]

Put the microphone down and help, you f-ing idiot.

[Simms]

Whoa....That's a Wichita station. I know that intersection.

[Maple Leafs]

I feel bad for that reporter. He's in an impossible situation, live on the air when something like that happens. It's easy for us to sit back and decide what he should have done, but he's hung out to dry. It's clear from his voice that he's upset at what he's just seen, and while I'm sure he wishes he'd gone to help, I doubt there's much he could have done.

[Ben E Lou]

I feel bad for that reporter. He's in an impossible situation, live on the air when something like that happens. It's easy for us to sit back and decide what he should have done, but he's hung out to dry. It's clear from his voice that he's upset at what he's just seen, and while I'm sure he wishes he'd gone to help, I doubt there's much he could have done.I dunno. The telling comment is by the lady back in the studio. She says it politely, but her words/face/body language are clearly indicating, "CHECK ON THEM, YOU INHUMAN MORON!" That being said, I'll admit that after the events of this January, I've got a chip on my shoulder with regarding to reporters responding to human tragedy.

Something about the "**BREAKING NEWS** Car Accident 53rd & 119th" graphic showing up is pretty striking as well. :eek:

[BigJohn&TheLions]

I feel bad for that reporter. He's in an impossible situation, live on the air when something like that happens. It's easy for us to sit back and decide what he should have done, but he's hung out to dry. It's clear from his voice that he's upset at what he's just seen, and while I'm sure he wishes he'd gone to help, I doubt there's much he could have done.

A friend of mine was on the air doing afternoons at WNBC-AM back in the 80's when he went to traffic and heard screams. The traffic chopper was crashing into the river. He's still shaken by it.

It is completely different when you are there though. I can't see the video, but if there are plenty of other people there handling it then you do your job as a reporter & cameraman and report. If there aren't enough people to help you put the mike and camera down and do your job as a human being...

[Simms]

Like ML, I can appreciate the tough position he's in...to a point. Not saying the whole thing is forgiveable, but I can't say that, put in the same situation, I would have been able to shrug everything else off and run to help, especially were I not particularly adept at any type of first aid (I'm not).

Something about the "**BREAKING NEWS** Car Accident 53rd & 119th" graphic showing up is pretty striking as well. :eek:
^^ *THAT* was pretty slimy though.

[Ryan S]

It's clear from his voice that he's upset at what he's just seen, and while I'm sure he wishes he'd gone to help, I doubt there's much he could have done.
I think his voice becomes more shakey because he realises just how close an escape he had.

[JeeberD]

How much you wanna bet the person in the car didn't see the truck because they were too busy looking at the cameraman instead of paying attention to the road?

[Blackadar]

They didn't see the truck because they didn't look left. They couldn't have - the turning vehicle blocked their view.

[GrantDawg]

I think you guys are being a little unfair. That guy just about got killed and was in shock. He spoke maybe 20 seconds after the accident, then he signed off. He made sure to repeat exactly where he was most likely to make sure the people in the station called 911. I don't doubt he then went to help the woman as quickly as he possibily could pull himself back together. News people can be an uncaring lot, but this isn't the best example.

[GrantDawg]

I went back and watched. By the timer it was less than a minute before he was off the air. You really think that is enough to persecute this guy?

[rkmsuf]

I say we get someone to rip his nuts off

[sabotai]

I went back and watched. By the timer it was less than a minute before he was off the air. You really think that is enough to persecute this guy?

Yes. Especially since there was a part where he positioned himself back into the view of the camera. That pretty much told me he was more worried about face time than the situation of the person in the car. If he's in shock, he's not worrying about getting himself back on camera.

[Calis]

Whoa....That's a Wichita station. I know that intersection.

Yep, this was from I believe Kake news in Wichita two days ago. I remember thems showing it on their, what timing for a story on how bad the intersection is.

There's been a bunch of real bad accidents there lately.

And yeah, I think it's a bit unfair to blast the guy, as he really did appear to just be in shock at the time, and was probably inwardly thanking God he didn't just get drilled. I imagine it'd take a minute to gather myself in the situation as well.

EDIT: I should add I can't get the video to play, so I'm just going off the memory of seeing it the first time, so I could be way off base.

[Tekneek]

The whole problem was the idiot proceeding into the intersection without making sure both directions were completely clear. Lazy bastard could have have killed several people.

[Julio Riddols]

WOW.. What timing for an informative news story.. I think he did his job well, reporting further on why this issue needs to be explored before going to help the people.. It's clear that he was looking out for the well being of the passengers because he makes sure to tell the address of the site as clearly as possible and tries to update on the severity of it all. The cameraman only focused back on him after a good 20 plus seconds of chaos, at which time he said he was going to stay and check the situation and promptly signed off. The anchorwoman only appears shaken by what she has witnessed to me... Not anything more than concern for fellow humans in her voice when she says her part.

Just what I got from it.. Maybe I'm too optimistic about the true human condition.

[Maple Leafs]

I guess if anyone here ever witnesses what was probably a fatal car accident at high speeds, which incidentally comes within a few feet of killing them too, they'll just calmly jog over to the nearest vehicle and start saving lives. I have to say, you guys are a pretty stoic bunch.

[jetpunk2000]

Did they happen to follow up on this? Was everyone involved OK?

[JonInMiddleGA]

Just a thought -- Perhaps the most famous incident ever captured on-air by someone on the scene might be the radio coverage of the Hindenburg disaster. You know, the legendary "Oh the humanity" audio.

As I recall, the guy did his job as long as he could (and actually resumed recording after composing himself), but he didn't go running into the rescue efforts either.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_Morrison_%28announcer%29

And yet that reporting/recording is generally considered one of the most memorable in broadcast history. And I've never heard him criticized for not getting involved in the rescue effort. I don't really know that the number of rescuers is all that decisive here, judging from the footage I've seen of the Hindenburg aftermath, the situation could use all the help it could get.

I haven't seen this particular video, and probably won't go looking for it, I've seen enough car wrecks to last me a lifetime. But my point is that I don't know if there's much criticism deserved:
1) The reporter isn't (presumably) an EMT, this isn't his expertise & he could easily do as much harm as good.
2) There's legitimate reason to believe that he's a bit "shocky" from either what he's seen or how close he came or some combination of both.
3) Good reporters are trained, among other things, to report the story not BE the story. And in situations where you're stunned/shocked/whatever, I believe that training which has become as ingrained as instinct might be even more likely to take over.

His reaction might not have been everybody's reaction, but I don't believe he'd be alone in reacting the way he did either.

[cthomer5000]

How much you wanna bet the person in the car didn't see the truck because they were too busy looking at the cameraman instead of paying attention to the road?
I have little doubt it played a role.

[Noop]

Wow. Guess this is America.....

[judicial clerk]

OK. I'm convinced. Its not a safe intersection.

[sabotai]

Checking to see if everyone is ok after a car accident is just a little different than running into a zepplin that is completely engulfed in flames.

Just a little.

[Maple Leafs]

Imagine if he had dropped his mic and ran straight for the car. I can just see it now:

"What a surprise, the reporter has to be the hero, he has to be the center of attention, god forbid he just have them call 911 and let the pros handle the life-saving. No, he has to make sure he looks good on camera, he probably crippled that poor woman dragging her out of the car like that..."

[sabotai]

Imagine if he had dropped his mic and ran straight for the car. I can just see it now:

"What a surprise, the reporter has to be the hero, he has to be the center of attention, god forbid he just have them call 911 and let the pros handle the life-saving. No, he has to make sure he looks good on camera, he probably crippled that poor woman dragging her out of the car like that..."

First off, that's total nonsense.

Secondly, the reporter must explicitly tell the people back at the station to call 911? I think them doing that would be a given.

Thirdly, you don't have to drag a person's body out of a car to help them after a car wreck.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Imagine if he had dropped his mic and ran straight for the car. I can just see it now:

"What a surprise, the reporter has to be the hero, he has to be the center of attention, god forbid he just have them call 911 and let the pros handle the life-saving. No, he has to make sure he looks good on camera, he probably crippled that poor woman dragging her out of the car like that..."

Good call IMO.

There's good reporters, bad reporters, and everything in between -- the one thing they all seem to have in common is that they can't really win for losing.

[Calis]

If I remember right from the update yesterday, there was only the driver of each vehicle, both males in their mid 40's.

One of them was ok..(I THINK it was the one who ran it to begin with), and only went in to the hospital for a check up type thing.

The other was in serious but stable condition I think. Not 100% sure on that though.

[Huckleberry]

Man, that woman is going to have a hard time convincing the cops it wasn't her fault.

Hopefully she's alright and hopefully the man driving the truck is alright, too. Often people will walk away from their cars even though they have a neck and/or back injury.

[Calis]

http://www.kwch.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=KWCH/MGArticle/WCH_BasicArticle&c=MGArticle&cid=1031777981746&path=

Here's an article from the news station it happened on. It was KWCH here, our CBS affiliate...was wrong on that one earlier.

Looks like the guy who did it is in critical condition, and the guy in the truck he hit is ok.

[Buccaneer]

I hate f-ing reporters and their f-ing 'if it bleeds, it leads' mentality. Here's the advice: you drop the f-ing camera and both of you help in any way you can.

[EagleFan]

Which video clip is it? The top two won't play for me and it doesn;t seem to be the rest. HAven;t watched them ni their entirety but they don;e seem to be headed in that direction (unless the car crash is in the studio).

[psychedelicate-girl]

Oh please! It is obvious when the camers pans over to the wrecked car that other people have stopped to help. Give the guy a break for doing his job!

[JeeberD]

Imagine if he had dropped his mic and ran straight for the car. I can just see it now:

"What a surprise, the reporter has to be the hero, he has to be the center of attention, god forbid he just have them call 911 and let the pros handle the life-saving. No, he has to make sure he looks good on camera, he probably crippled that poor woman dragging her out of the car like that..."

ML hit the nail on the head here...



Which video clip is it? The top two won't play for me and it doesn;t seem to be the rest. HAven;t watched them ni their entirety but they don;e seem to be headed in that direction (unless the car crash is in the studio).

Don't click on any of the links...the video will load by itself.

[Maple Leafs]

Thirdly, you don't have to drag a person's body out of a car to help them after a car wreck.Does he know that? Why do we assume this guy was a paramedic?

We love to trash reporters for acting like know-it-alls who think they're experts in any given subject, but the one time a guy acts like he's not sure what to do and we want to string him up.

[Buccaneer]

I think his voice becomes more shakey because he realises just how close an escape he had.
I say BS because no local broadcasters can say anything on their own without a script or going over it repeatedly before the camera goes on. Even their canned "chitchat" has to be scripted because they cannot think on their own. While this accident was a surprise, he was at a loss for words because it was not in the script. Even if The Face was in too much shock to react, the cameraperson wasn't since he/she still aimed and focused. The first order of business is to help others in need, not to sell ads to Olay.

[JonInMiddleGA]

The first order of business is to help others in need, not to sell ads to Olay.

Umm ... not if they're interested in keeping their job.

[Maple Leafs]

I say BS because no local broadcasters can say anything on their own without a script or going over it repeatedly before the camera goes on. Even their canned "chitchat" has to be scripted because they cannot think on their own. While this accident was a surprise, he was at a loss for words because it was not in the script. Even if The Face was in too much shock to react, the cameraperson wasn't since he/she still aimed and focused. The first order of business is to help others in need, not to sell ads to Olay.That's funny. I know several people who went into TV journalism. They all seemed like pretty smart people. I guess I had it wrong.

[Buccaneer]

Umm ... not if they're interested in keeping their job.
Then it becomes a sad commentary on the industry and on society that encourages it.

Yes, I am one of those people that gets real pissed off at those slowing down to rubberneck.

[Buccaneer]

That's funny. I know several people who went into TV journalism. They all seemed like pretty smart people. I guess I had it wrong.
Except when the camera comes on. ;)

[JonInMiddleGA]

Then it becomes a sad commentary on the industry and on society that encourages it.

I won't argue that it might be sad, but it's also (at least somewhat) realistic.

{The qualifier is because, in my experience, the reaction would depend upon the individual boss}

[Buccaneer]

I won't argue that it might be sad, but it's also (at least somewhat) realistic.

{The qualifier is because, in my experience, the reaction would depend upon the individual boss}
I can agree with that.

[cartman]

I can only hope that if I have a horrible accident that CNN's Rudi Bahktiar is on the scene to administer mouth to mouth.

[kcchief19]

I say BS because no local broadcasters can say anything on their own without a script or going over it repeatedly before the camera goes on. Even their canned "chitchat" has to be scripted because they cannot think on their own. While this accident was a surprise, he was at a loss for words because it was not in the script. Even if The Face was in too much shock to react, the cameraperson wasn't since he/she still aimed and focused. The first order of business is to help others in need, not to sell ads to Olay.This is dripping with such bias it is barely worth quoting, Bucc, but I have to say that you have ZERO idea what you are talking about. This comment shows me that you have never witnessed a news broadcast and have no credibility on the subject.

I've worked in TV -- and I'll admit there's a reason I don't anymore. For me, the final straw was the Oklahoma City Bombing. I was torn on how I felt about the coverage. I have no doubt that I could have covered the story and reported the facts, although it would have been hard for me to report on a story if I felt I was in the way of rescue workers or there was something I could do to help.

But the kicker was that I realized that if I were a local reporter in Oklahoma City that day and the following days, it would have been my job to put a microphone and a camera in front of the face of people who just lost their spouses and children -- and I didn't want to do it.

But here's the thing -- it's not the reporters, news directors or anyone else at any TV station. It's everybody's fault. You critize the "if it bleeds, it leads" mentality -- but what are young doing in here? The words are right there in the thread -- "Car Accident Video From Local TV News" -- you saw the sensational headline and you dove right in. If we didn't watch it, they wouldn't show it. Don't blame the reporters -- they are just giving us what we want.

If you want to hate somebody, hate everybody. People are the worst. "The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves, that we are underlings."

[Buccaneer]

Don't put thoughts that are not there, Matt, because they are not true but only perceptions. The interest in this was what SkyDog led off with and I assume was Boortz's point as well. I have stopped watching any news broadcast of any kind regularly because even you have to be ashamed at nearly every single broadcast (and yes, I have been in both a live TV and radio studio). You are right in that it is a bias but I think it has been well earned and I have not seen anything (of what I catch) that merits any change in my opinions about TV journalism and the minions that they cater to.

[EagleFan]

But here's the thing -- it's not the reporters, news directors or anyone else at any TV station. It's everybody's fault. You critize the "if it bleeds, it leads" mentality -- but what are young doing in here? The words are right there in the thread -- "Car Accident Video From Local TV News" -- you saw the sensational headline and you dove right in. If we didn't watch it, they wouldn't show it. Don't blame the reporters -- they are just giving us what we want.



..."She can tell you 'bout the plane crash, with a gleem in her eye"...

..."Get the widow on the set..."

[ice4277]

I say BS because no local broadcasters can say anything on their own without a script or going over it repeatedly before the camera goes on. Even their canned "chitchat" has to be scripted because they cannot think on their own. While this accident was a surprise, he was at a loss for words because it was not in the script. Even if The Face was in too much shock to react, the cameraperson wasn't since he/she still aimed and focused. The first order of business is to help others in need, not to sell ads to Olay.
I have to say, this is probably the most asinine thing I have ever seen from you here. While there may be a few 'talking heads' for whom this is the case as somebody who has been a reporter on radio, and is friends with a number of tv reporters, I can tell you are way off base on many of them. Maybe you would be lost for words if you were almost hit by a car too.

And, no, to set the record straight, not all the 'chitchat' is canned either. I'm glad you've been in a television station before, I'm sure that makes you an expert on the industry, congratulations.

[Noop]

You should let him have his fun.

"If he aint bitching then he aint quittin" <---Joke.

[Maple Leafs]

I started my career in journalism and I left that indistry largely because I wasn't comfortable covering some of the tougher stories -- interviewing victims families, etc.

I believe that interviewing those who are affected by tragedies is an essential part of the story, and that the public good can be served by seeing the grief of others.

If those two statements seem to contradict each other, they don't. I know firsthand how difficult the experience can be for everyone involved, but I also understand why it's necessary. Yes, it's easy to criticize when your knowledge of journalism doesn't extend past sitting on your couch watching the local news. As with most things, when you've spent a little time actually experiening the situation you find out that it's not quite so simple.

[Buccaneer]

Sorry, I was tired and cranky last night. I do have a bias in being against the trend towards sensationlistic and tabloid journalism but I can't generalize the whole industry as such.

[Buccaneer]

Two snippets:

Ex-Watergate writer laments 'idiot culture'
Former Washington Post reporter Carl Bernstein told about 200 people in Tampa that today's media is more gossip and trash than news.
By BRADY DENNIS, Times Staff Writer
Published March 19, 2004

TAMPA - Legendary reporter Carl Bernstein riffed Thursday night about President Bush, the Martha Stewart trial, the war in Iraq and his affection for Florida.

But mostly he talked about an epidemic that troubles him deeply these days. He calls it "the triumph of idiot culture."

Speaking to a crowd of about 200 at the Wyndham Westshore, he placed most of the blame on modern media outlets.

Bernstein, the former Washington Post journalist who, along with fellow reporter Bob Woodward, unearthed the Watergate scandal that led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon, said much of today's news has deteriorated into gossip, sensationalism and manufactured controversy.

That type of news panders to the public and insults their intelligence, ignoring the context of real life, he said. Good journalism, Bernstein said, "should challenge people, not just mindlessly amuse them."

He said the modern press lacks true leadership, citing such examples as AOL Time Warner and mogul Rupert Murdoch as media owners that have increasingly abandoned the principles of meaningful reporting.

"Their interest in truth is secondary to their interest in huge profits," Bernstein said.

Still, he said people can change that trend by exploring the Internet and piecing together from reputable sources their own news about important world matters.

He offered another solution to avoiding the trash that fills the airwaves: "Change the damn channel. Simple."
...

CONSENSUAL CRIMES CORRUPT THE FREEDOM OF THE PRESS
Copyright © 1996 Peter McWilliams & Prelude Press

"A free press is not a privilege but an organic necessity in a great society."---WALTER LIPPMANN

[snip.,..first part on the history of the press]

"I am entirely persuaded that the American public is more reasonable, restrained and mature than most of the broadcast industry's planners believe. Their fear of controversy is not warranted by the evidence."
EDWARD R. MURROW

On CBS Radio, Edward R. Murrow reported firsthand the devastation of German bombings on London during the blitz. This further tilted American sympathies toward the underdog, England. His voice did more to fight Hitler than probably any other. In 1954, he was to use television to take on yet another monster, Senator Joseph McCarthy and his witch hunt. "We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty," said Murrow on that historic telecast. "We will not be driven by fear into an age of unreason if we remember that we are not descended from fearful men, not from men who feared to write, to speak, to associate and to defend causes which were, for the moment, unpopular." In both instances, he risked his life; in both instances, he won. (He lost the battle with cigarettes, however, dying of lung cancer in 1965.)

In our own time (well, I suppose that depends on when you were born, doesn't it?—in my own time, at any rate), we saw a president toppled by a couple of reporters, Woodward and Bernstein, who inspired thousands of young people to take up investigative journalism. Then, after Woodward and Bernstein were portrayed in the movies by Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford, tens of thousands applied to journalism schools.

"The media I've had a lot to do with is lazy. We fed them and they ate it every day."
MICHAEL DEAVER, Former top aide to President Reagan

Through the media we learn about our world, our life, medical breakthroughs, scientific advances, toppling regimes, the truth about history, useful news, trivial news, useful trivial news, good news, bad news—news.

We rely on it, depend on its accuracy, and, if it turns out to be inaccurate, we expect another news organization to expose the expos. Freedom of the press is a fundamental right, up there with freedom of speech and freedom of and from religion. A free press is not a luxury; it's a necessity.

How do consensual crimes corrupt our free press? Several ways.

First, since committing a consensual crime is breaking the law and since breaking the law is news, reporters are often sent out looking for video on drug busts, hookers, or stories on who is sleeping with whom and whether they're married to someone else. In the end, none of this has much to do with our lives (certainly not in the way that murderers, rapists, robbers, polluters, price-fixers, and bribe-takers do). So—like the police, courts, and prisons—the reporters' time and the media's space are overburdened with fluff. And not very interesting fluff at that. (You've seen one drug bust on TV, you've seen 'em all.)"you'd think America was populated solely by naked women and cinema stars."> There's plenty of international tension, domestic strife, real crime, corruption, and consumer activism to keep every reporter and his or her place of reporting busy, productive, highly rated, and of service to the community. There might even be a little time to dig up some good news.

"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free . . .it expects what never was
and never will be."
THOMAS JEFFERSON - 1816

Second, since consensual crimes are not based on hurting others but on religious interpretations by a handful of moralists, some journalists have been turned (some willingly, some not) into professional gossips and busybodies. Gossip is fine, gossip is entertaining, but it belongs on Entertainment Tonight and best-seller lists, not the network evening newscasts. "The things most people want to know about," wrote George Bernard Shaw, "are usually none of their business." Did Gary Hart really deserve to lose all of his political credibility because he took a boat ride with a young beauty? Mr. Hart's wife did not object; his ocean-going companion did not object; one must assume Mr. Hart himself did not object. To quote a television commercial of roughly that same time frame: "Where's the beef?"think that commercial happened at about the same time as Gary Hart's aborted presidential campaign. I cannot be sure. History for me is broken into four phases: (1) before I was born, (2) from the time of my birth until now, (3) now, and (4) has it happened yet? I do know that both Gary Hart's being caught in adultery—not quite in the act, but at least in the yacht—and that dear lady asking "Where's the beef?" happened some time during Phase 2.> Was this one seagoing sexual misadventure really sufficient grounds to completely ignore everything political about him, everything this man stood for, spent a lifetime building, and was doing a fairly good job bringing to the arena of public discussion? Gary Hart was sacrificed to a group of yapping moralists who claim that "an adulterer" is not fit to run for president. The yapping was served up by a "free" press bound by the chains of delivering late-breaking scandals with photos, video, and sound bites if at all possible. And what did the American people get in exchange? A truly dull campaign: Dukakis versus Reagan. Yawn. As Jay Leno observed, "Dukakis is Greek for Mondale."

"The media. It sounds like a convention of spiritualists."
TOM STOPPARD

Third, just as when cops need some easy collars and round up some consensual criminals, so too, reporters—when there's dead air to fill or an article to embellish—go out and round up some consensual crime stories. Need some quick video? Take a female reporter, put her in some fishnet stockings and a dress cut low enough to reveal her journalistic integrity, have her meander the sidewalk with the streetwalkers, and follow her with a hidden camera. (The camera can be hidden in a van marked ACTION NEWS with a little satellite dish on top and you'll still get good video—men are terribly unobservant of all but one thing when their testosterone is raging.) If you really want ratings, put a male reporter in the same costume and situation.

Finally, as with police, journalists should regain the respect they are entitled to. Reporting a lot of "trash for cash" has tarnished the good name of reportage. Remember when Walter Cronkite, as the anchor of an evening newscast, was considered "the most trusted man in America"? Why not return to those thrilling days of yesteryear? It wasn't just Walter Cronkite; Huntley and Brinkley were well respected. Brinkley's still at it, saying wonderfully honest things, such as "The one function that TV news performs very well is that when there is no news we give it to you with the same emphasis as if there were." There are, of course, other contemporary examples: Hugh Downs, Larry King, John Chancellor, and Bill Moyers.

The press not only cheapens itself by playing tattletale and reporting the consensual exploits of others; it also "eats its young" by reporting on the consensual activities of its own. An absurd example of the latter involves an attractive female "reporter" who invited Larry King up to her hotel room, which just happened to have more hidden cameras than Allen Funt's bathroom. Well, the tape went on and on and on, and Mr. King made nary an improper move. But, dull as it was, they showed the tape anyway. After all, Larry King is a star; there's air time to fill; and, even if he didn't do anything, it will make a great teaser: "Larry King follows our reporter up to her hotel room! What happens then? Tune in tonight and find out!" (Although I don't remember the name of the show, why do I have the sneaking suspicion it was on Fox? "All the networks are struggling now with their desire to put on live executions, if they could, to get the ratings," said Gary David Goldberg; "I think the difference is that Fox would put on naked live executions.")

"Newspapers have degenerated. They may now be absolutely relied upon."
OSCAR WILDE

We're entitled to a free press, and the press is entitled to be free from rumor-mongering and reporting on the latest scandal from Gossip Central.