There was plenty of response to Tuesdays Remote Control about TV coverage (or lack thereof) for the Sotomayor Hearing on Capitol Hill. Shoptalk reader Ron DePaulis retired from ABC News expressed his dismay with the decision of his former employer (plus NBC and CBS) not to provide gavel-to-gavel coverage:
It is a prime example of the demise of network Television News. Jackson coverage was based on viewer attraction. Sotomayer, while important and newsworthy, since her decisions will affect the lives of Americans for decades to come, probably wouldn’t attract as many viewers, so journalism about a news event takes another backseat to entertainment coverage. It should not come as a surprise to anyone.
In contrast, check out this response from journalist-blogger Mike James:
Devoting four hours of time on an eventual Supreme Court nominee wouldn’t make good economic sense. The big three already lost a ton of money in advertising to the Michael Jackson memorial last week. Couple that with the fact the broadcast industry is suffering from a lack of advertising revenue, they need to get all the money they can! The difference here is everyone wanted to see the Michael Jackson memorial. 30 million nationally and over a billion worldwide. Watching a bunch of Senators talk for hours would be like watching paint dry. There haven’t been any major bombshells, no sexual harassment claims and no one pulling a “Bork.” Short of an “Anita Hill” moment, the hearings would be a ratings killer. Although it will make Americans even dumber!
Dumb or dumber? You be the judge
Erik Sorenson is chief executive officer of Vault.com, Inc. He oversees the strategic direction of the global, New York-based media company, including ShopTalk & TVSPY. If you would like to comment on Remote Control, or want to reach Erik, email remotecontrol@tvspy.