As I watched the extensive television coverage of an airplane crashing into a building on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, I noticed how the main point of the reporting focused on whether the collision was a terrorist attack or not. On CNN and on the local networks, the news repeated over and over again was that the crash was not yet confirmed as a terrorist attack.
Granted, this is understandable in the post-9/11 world. An airplane crashing into a building in New York is clearly newsworthy and should be covered. And the possibility of a terrorist attack should also be considered. But up until what point? Is there another story here, i.e. the actual victims and deceased, which is being neglected?
I don't intend to answer any of those questions. In the end, the news coverage we see today is a direct result of the traumatic events of 9/11. So, what did the news reporters and anchors exactly do in the coverage today?
They filled the time with reports from people on the street and with government officials. Soon, it became obvious what the implications of the reporting were. Although no reporter or anchor said the collision was a terrorist attack, the possibility was brought up frequently as was the mention of 9/11.
Each person interviewed during the coverage was asked what their reaction was to the crash, trying to get some visceral 9/11-type reaction out of them.
If the news reporters did not focus so much on the possibility of a terrorist attack, they could focus on one of the most important aspects of the event: the victims of the crash.
In fact, during the CNN coverage, the news that one person was reported dead from the collision was just haphazardly mentioned during an interview with a Federal Aviation Administration official.
Are we so desensitized to death and violence, that the victims of this crash should be a secondary story?
As I'm finishing up on this post, it is being reported that the pilot of the plane may have been Yankees pitcher Cory Lidle. If this news is in fact true, it will be interesting to see just how different the coverage becomes.
Michael Luke @ October 11, 2006 - 5:30pm
Once the terrorist angle was debunked, media immediately went in to celebrity/athlete worship. Local coverage focused on only Lidle; it was distrubing and short-sighted.
While I'm sure that Lidle was a fine man, limiting the scope to a New York Yankee besmirches and devalues the memories of those that died this afternoon.
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