AboutSay No to Government Censorship - Always
Jeff Jarvis' (@jeffjarvis) twitter description reads: "#resist @BuzzMachine blogger and j-school prof; author of Public Parts, What Would Google Do?" He is almost always right on issues to do with journalism. But I'm afraid his antipathy to Donald Trump (to put it it mildly) may be influencing his judgment. We had the following twitter exchange (btw, I consider Jeff a friend and hope he still feels that way about me). The background is that the Sinclair Broadcast Group ran promos taped by the anchors at the many local TV stations they own which, among other things, complained about "the troubling trend of irresponsible, one sided news stories plaguing our country" [I've quoted the full text of the promo way below].
When sane people take over again, Sinclair's licenses should be challenged. All of them.
— Jeff Jarvis (@jeffjarvis) April 3, 2018
Jeff, with all due respect you seem to have been afflicted by the disease that makes us come to resemble our enemies. You sound like @realdonaldtrump in wanting to use state power to censor speech you don't agree with and whose motivation you suspect.
— Tom Evslin (@tevslin) April 3, 2018
One voice forced through the mouths of journalists is propaganda.
— Jeff Jarvis (@jeffjarvis) April 3, 2018
"propaganda" is in the eye of the beholder . Do you really want to set the precedent that government can shut down a tv station because, in that government's view (even if right) the "news" may be tainted? Think what would happen now if that precedent existed!
— Tom Evslin (@tevslin) April 3, 2018
Hear what I am saying: A corporation forced journalists to read a script as if it were their own. That is not journalism. Thus it is fraud.
— Jeff Jarvis (@jeffjarvis) April 3, 2018
I do hear u; I listen carefully 2 what u say; that's why I care about this. We know anchors read teleprompters. Do u want government 2 have power 2 investigate the pressures on newswriters and editors which shape scripts? I don't. It would inevitably be misused, like right now
— Tom Evslin (@tevslin) April 3, 2018
The misuse of power is what we see in Sinclair. To say that their journalists are independent -- and journalists -- is a lie. I don't much like the FCC framework but under it Sinclair is not fulfilling its mission & should not be allowed to buy Tribune, btw.
— Jeff Jarvis (@jeffjarvis) April 3, 2018
Trump believes CBS hires journalists based on their opinions; should he be able to order the FCC 2 deny licenses 2 affiliates because these aren't independent? Should the FCC be able to investigate whether every anchor has the right 2 edit her scripts? This would be terrible.
— Tom Evslin (@tevslin) April 3, 2018
1. this is a different issue than taking licenses away.
— Tom Evslin (@tevslin) April 3, 2018
2. if 71% market coverage is too much, than it should be too much for any corporation, not just those with whom we disagree.
3. denying a license because of political reviews is as bad as granting one for this reason
Yesterday on set, I watched @KatyTurNBC edit the script on her Teleprompter, deciding what she would say as she is responsible for that. Journalism. The Sinclair "journalists" do not have that independence. No need to investigate; evidence in the video is there for all to see.
— Jeff Jarvis (@jeffjarvis) April 3, 2018
Tom. See @KatyTurNBC's tweet. This isn't about political leaning. It is about fraud.
— Jeff Jarvis (@jeffjarvis) April 3, 2018
At this point NBC anchor Katy Tur joined the tweetstream.
I write, rewrite, and review all my scripts. Producers and editors are not the same as corporate bosses writing copy. That message wasn't written by someone in the newsroom, employed as a journalist. It was written by someone in the parent company. That's why it is an issue.
— Katy Tur (@KatyTurNBC) April 3, 2018
Producers and editors may write scripts but they don't put opinions into the mouths of their anchors. If I'm saying "I" it is because "I" believe it. The TelePrompTer is an aid not a crutch.
— Katy Tur (@KatyTurNBC) April 3, 2018
Katy, u are giving a good reason 2 watch u and not watch Sinclair - but not a reason 2 use awesome government power 2 decide whom I can watch. networks differ in their PoV; this is an inevitable effect of owners hiring editors etc. they like. no problem as long as we have choice.
— Tom Evslin (@tevslin) April 3, 2018
not being snarky but would like to know:
— Tom Evslin (@tevslin) April 3, 2018
Do you appear in promos for the station and or its news?
If so who writes the script for these?
Katy has not answered the questions in my tweet above but is entirely possible she never noticed it.
Below is the KOMO TV version of the script as quoted in the Seattle PI that the Sinclair anchors were "forced" to read in the promos (not in the news itself). I actually don't find it objectionable. There's some puffery but it is a promo. It's certainly true that there is plenty of "fake news", opinion masquerading as news, unchecked "facts" and plenty of sloppy reporting on both the left on the right and even in the middle. But in my PoV, the important point is that it would be terrible, now or in the future, to have the government award licenses based on politics or government opinion of whether a station is practicing true journalism.
"Hi, I'm(A) ____________, and I'm (B) _________________...
(B) Our greatest responsibility is to serve our Northwest communities. We are extremely proud of the quality, balanced journalism that KOMO News produces.
(A) But we're concerned about the troubling trend of irresponsible, one sided news stories plaguing our country. The sharing of biased and false news has become all too common on social media.
(B) More alarming, some media outlets publish these same fake stories... stories that just aren't true, without checking facts first.
(A) Unfortunately, some members of the media use their platforms to push their own personal bias and agenda to control 'exactly what people think'...This is extremely dangerous to a democracy.
(B) At KOMO it's our responsibility to pursue and report the truth. We understand Truth is neither politically 'left nor right.' Our commitment to factual reporting is the foundation of our credibility, now more than ever.
(A) But we are human and sometimes our reporting might fall short. If you believe our coverage is unfair please reach out to us by going to KOMOnews.com and clicking on CONTENT CONCERNS. We value your comments. We will respond back to you.
(B) We work very hard to seek the truth and strive to be fair, balanced and factual... We consider it our honor, our privilege to responsibly deliver the news every day.
(A) Thank you for watching and we appreciate your feedback"
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