Natalee Holloway story: "Emotional pornography."

[crispini]

GREAT turn of phrase, interesting article on Greta Van S's coverage:

snip...

"Emotional pornography like the Natalee Holloway story is more alluring, just as a car crash is better TV than a news conference," said Matthew Felling of the Washington-based Center for Media and Public Affairs. "But this media rubbernecking is partly to blame for the public's dissatisfaction in the media as a newsgathering enterprise."

http://www.newsday.com/entertainment/tv/wire/sns-ap-tv-greta-van-susteren,0,398349.story?coll=sns-ap-tv-headlines

[Son of California]

1. As sad as I feel for that family

I feel like the media exploitation of this tragedy is disgusting.
Especially when so many other important issues are being ignored to make room for it.

Should we all here at the DU barrage the cable news channels with emails telling them we are sick of the story and want them to cover something more relevant?

[applegrove]

2. Not the families fault. They have every right to try to use everything.

yes pornography is a good way of putting it. Much of TV is. Martha Stewart is pornography for nesters. They are not kidding when they call it newsphotanement. Then again - I like the shows where the bad guys get in trouble - cause I am a crime victim.

[Warren DeMontague]

3. I call it "NEWZ". And yes, it's a sad story.

But like Laci Peterson, the coverage far outweighs the actual import of the events. It's not News, it's "NEWZ". And it's pretty much all they're peddling on cable these days.

[WorseBeforeBetter]

4. Indeed. And the "news" the summer before 9/11?

Nothing but the "emotional pornography" of Chandra Levy and Gary Condit. And shark attacks. I wonder if the country is in for a rude awakening post-Smirk's vacation.

[bobbieinok]

5. and NO coverage of Scarborough and DEAD INTERN IN HIS OFFICE

A DEAD INTERN IN HIS OFFICE....with funny business about the coroner's report, etc

what made the difference???? ....... Condit a democrat and Scarborough a republican

there's a thread somewhere at salon.com's tabletalk titled 'it's ok if you're a republican'

[WorseBeforeBetter]

9. Damn that librul media!

To add insult to injury he gets an hour on MSNBC. Show sucks, but still...

[carpe diem]

6. i just saw Mark Furhman for the 3 seconds at a time I can stand to look...

at Fox saying that WE as Americans ought to boycott Aruba and bring the country to its knees economically if they don't hand over control of this investigation to the FBI...I would LOVE to see the reaction if someone from a foreign country went missing in FLORIDA and her family came here and demanded that the entire law enforcement apparatus of the state of Florida be handed over to the control of the government of their home country.

It doesn't even make practical sense. I understand that these are probably good Republicans who, like there leader, have no respect for the laws of this or any other country if it stands in the way of them getting what they want. But, it would probably create all kinds of legal conflicts in the prosecution of any criminal case if the various jurisdictional issues related to law enforcement are not respected. You would think they would either know that or someone would point that out to them.

BTW, I heard the other day that Joran was being interrogated everyday. You would think a 17 yr. old kid under that kind of pressure would have cracked by now...maybe he really doesn't know what happened to her?

[Botany]

7. Just escapism ...... never mind the dead marines from Ohio.

I used to think that people who talked about manipulation of the news
were UFO watching freaks ..... not any more. I saw and heard the election
fraud in Ohio first hand ....... The media either says I am nuts or does not
cover the subject.

It is nothing more then porno to keep us occupied so we don't seek
real satisfaction elsewhere.

40 marines killed = Fox 2 hour of a front loader in a dump looking
for clues.

[Old and In the Way]

8. News you can't use.

News that affects .0000001% of the population. A total waste of the public airwaves.

BTW, I have no problem with a victims channel. Why not have a whole station devoted to these type of stories? One that doesn't pretend to be a news station. And let the 99.999999% get informed about stuff that really matters in our lives.

Do you think cable networks poll their audience? I mean, do they really have polling data that tells them that the #1 thing on our mind is what happened to poor Ms. Halloway?

It's getting ridiculous, I think either Fax or MSNBC was interviewing a friend last night (it was on in the other room)....I couldn't believe that the TV personality was leading her questions the way she was doing it....totally disgusting.