As I cycled away, going nowhere, on Thursday morning, I started to watch the screens whilst listening to my i-pod. The tragic events in Cumbria the day before was the lead story across all the news. The events were still coming to light and little more was certain than the number of people killed and injured. Sky had sent a correspondent to stand in Whitehaven to report on the story. From what I could make out, as large BREAKING NEWS tickers ran across the bottom of the screen he was there offering opinion and conjecture. The gunman might have killed his brother, he may have had financial problems, he had a gun license. Various people were interviewed who may or may not have had relevance to the report. James was listening as well as watching and later told me that they had interviewed a man who had seen Derrick Bird that morning and later heard two bangs. That was his connection. That was his contribution to the reporting of the news.
I would argue that news reporting has become less about reporting the facts and more about conjecture and sensationalising stories to fill the 24 hours of news broadcasting we now have available to us in a variety of media forms. I cannot speak for the people of Whitehaven, and nor do I wish to, but I wanted to shout at the Sky News man to go away and leave the grieving, hurting, shocked community alone. I wanted to tell him to turn his camera off and go and have a cup of tea in the local church hall, to talk to residents without his camera, to build a story and then report on it later if he had to. I wanted him to DO something to help the community in which he stood with his camera and his equipment.
My anger and dislike of this type of news goes further. I cannot stand studio presenters who find pundits and people to interview on a huge range of issues with the sole of aim of trying to catch them out, or if that fails putting words in their mouths to suit the stance of the story they are presenting.
Despite my strong feelings I find myself fascinated by news. I check the BBC website a couple of times a day, both local and national. I read the website of my local rag and I LOVE to spend a weekend trawling through the Guardian or the Observer. But why? Where does my desire to know what's happening come from?
Does it stem from the same place as my last post? The desire to feel part of a community, be it Croydon, London, the UK or indeed the World? Do I like to know what's happened so I can talk to others about it, so I can share it, or share the experience?
24 hour news draws us in and gives people across the globe the chance to be part of a communal experience, good or bad. On 11th September 2001 I was in the air flying home from my first holiday with James. I was nowhere near a computer or a TV screen when the second plane hit the twin towers. Whilst I am fully aware of the events, the aftermath, the impact and lasting damage that this event has caused around the world I did not share in its immediacy and do not feel like I have any ownership of it, unlike thousands and thousands of others.
My worry is that in sharing experiences we do not leave room to empathise with those most closely affected. We have our reactions and emotions and do not have the capacity to extend those feelings to others. We find ourselves unable to react, to help, or even maybe to care. And finally if it all gets too much for us, we do not have to do anything, we do not have to respond with kindness and humanity, with prayer and love. All we need to do is hit the off button.
