Lame News Story of the Day
I defend the press often. When readers complain of spelling errors, I point out just how many words the average editor processes per day. When they complain of liberal bias, I point 'em to Lou Dobbs or Fox News. When they complain about right-wing talk pundits, I mention Keith Olbermann.
But I can't defend journalists who waste words when there's simply no story. Here's what has me on this tirade: Steve Ballmer recently spoke at a BusinessWeek media event. Somehow, this was construed as the first step in Microsoft buying The New York Times. To some reporters, that little bit of nothing was a big story. Even bigger? Ballmer's adamant denial when surrounded by paparazzi-style journalists after the event.
The new journalist motto should be: "Writing all the news that's not fit to print." Are you a mindless media basher, an unabashed fourth-estate apologist or somewhere in between? Send your thoughts (they don't need to be copy edited) to [email protected].
Posted by Doug Barney on March 20, 2009