The media's new four-letter word is "hope" - and anti-optimism coverage is real In Donald Trump's book "The Art of the Deal" published 30 years ago, he reveals something that is particularly relevant today. "I play to people's fantasies. People may not always think big themselves, but they can still get very excited by those who do. That's why a little hyperbole never hurts," he writes. "People want to believe that something is the biggest and the greatest and the most spectacular. I call it truthful hyperbole."
President Trump portrays optimism during the coronavirus crisis. Maybe too much so. Optimism that is devoid of realism is unhelpful. But the media habit of instinctively countering every Trump action leads to a media coverage of coronavirus that is massively pessimistic. Pessimism grounded in realism, has merit. But so does optimism grounded in realism. Bill Maher had a fantastic segment on the "panic porn" of the media today - and what affect that may have on America. "Now that we're starting to see some hope in all this, don't 'hope-shame' me," said Maher. "The problem with non-stop doom and gloom is it gives Trump a chance to play the optimist. And optimists tend to win elections." | | President Barack Obama was able to win in 2008 with "hope and change" as the centerpiece of his campaign. Yes, it's a different time. We don't want "false hope." But the media coverage of hopelessness has been far too pervasive.
Maher focused on this New York Times' headline: "'It's Terrifying' Millions More Out of Work." "Who are they quoting? Trump? Fauci? Stephen King? No, they're quoting an event planner in North Hollywood." said Maher. "Why are you in my headline? How about this, just tell me millions are out of work without the flashlight under the chin, and I'll decide how I feel about it."
This critique is true across the media - this need to overemphasis the negativity, which is surely a creation of the Trump Era.
American are stepping up. They are helping their fellow citizens in incredible ways - all while making serious changes to their lives that have impressed even the health experts like Dr. Birx and Dr. Fauci (The Financial Times has a great piece about this).
Our media coverage is best when it tells us what's happening - and maybe letting in some optimism during the crisis. Report the facts, wherever they lead - even if it's to a light at the end of the tunnel. | | Media's geographic bias seen again in false "heartland hotspots" report Sadly for my friends and family on the East Coast, the states that remain hardest hit by the coronavirus crisis are New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, with Washington D.C. not far behind. The Acela Media, based largely in New York and D.C. (where the Acela Amtrak train travels), has a preconceived geographic bias that finds its way into all sorts of reporting, but has been particularly prevalent during this crisis - looking for ways to shame red state governors who didn't declare "stay at home" orders, and the Trump-supporting residents of those states. This week's false report came from CNN's Michael Warren, in a widely shared article on "heartland hotspots" - purporting to highlight the "sudden rise in coronavirus cases... hitting rural states without stay-at-home orders." The article focuses mainly on Oklahoma and South Dakota - the latter which has been a particular talking point among the media. I addressed many of the inaccuracies in the report on Twitter, but the bottom line is it's not an opinion - it's a fact. The IHME models that have been seen as the accepted metric tell a far different story than the article presents. Take Oklahoma. Here's a look at the resources needed based on the trajectory of cases. The state is past its peak in the crisis. The expected total deaths is just 359, a per capita number that puts it somewhere around Indiana right now. There is no "hotspot" expected. | | | Compare that to, say, Rhode Island. Rhode Island has a "stay at home" order, yes, but that came March 28, just 3 days before Oklahoma closed all essential business. Rhode Island's resources are being hit hard, and their peak is still to come. Compare their IHME model: | | | Rhode Island has four times fewer residents than Oklahoma, but is expected to have more coronavirus related deaths. But Rhode Island is a blue state, with a popular Democratic governor. The media coverage of Oklahoma, South Dakota and other states, features a geographic bias belied by actual data. | | On media self-reflection, digital campaigning and more: BCC Interview with NYT's Amy Chozick For this week's "BCC" interview, I emailed with Amy Chozick, writer-at-large at the New York Times and executive producer and co-creator of the Netflix original series " The Girls on the Bus." Chozick's book, " Chasing Hillary," was a fascinating read about both covering Hillary Clinton in 2008 and 2016 – and the media landscape. Chozick doesn't hold back in our discussion about the "parody of political coverage" she sees in the media today - and I've published the full email exchange here. We talked coronavirus briefings coverage ("The briefing ends and then there is the wave of Twitter outrage from both sides. Hailing whatever journalist who sparred with Trump that day as an national hero. Trump firing back usually with more lies or smears. And then (my favorite) there are the journalists who basically live Tweet the White House briefing in order to prove a point that cable channels should ignore the White House briefing. It's like a parody of political coverage."), digital campaigning ("You can imagine that the right candidate could do exactly that very effectively via social media. I don't think Joe Biden is that candidate. He has released videos, podcasts, etc, but they don't seem to be breaking through."), media self-reflection ("We are, frankly, terrible at self reflection. I get it. I suck at it, too – always look forward to the next story, never backwards at ourselves."), the future of journalism ("I worship so many of young reporters: Astead Herndon, Taylor Lorenz, Olivia Nuzzi") and more. Read the full BCC Interview here. | | | What happened on Twitter this week: "Bad Analogy" Edition
(Twitter is bad, but also, sort of good. Here's what you missed if you didn't spend your time on the cesspool of a social platform like the rest of the media.)
People are getting antsy being in isolation, and the media and celebrities who make up the bulk of Twitter conversation are no exception. With it, comes some very strained analogies and other attempts at context from prominent figures. Here are the best/worst:
1. CNN and PBS host Christiane Amanpour | | Besides going to bat for WHO - how exactly does this analogy work? Maybe the doctors and nurses are the firefighters, but a bureaucratic organization like WHO? Bonus points for the 9/11 reference.
2. MSNBC host Katy Tur | | While not an analogy, this attempt at providing context goes... nowhere. So, if Trump didn't have the long briefings, Americans wouldn't die? How many people die during Katy Tur's show?
3. Actor Patton Oswalt | | | Not exactly the media, but this tweet was the absolute most smug and condescending analogy of the week - and it set off a wild war of words with Fox News' Greg Gutfeld. | | Two Truths and a Lie (A new game for you in Fourth Watch - here are three stories from the media, but one is a "lie" - it came from The Onion or a similar parody site. Click the links after making your guess to find out the answer.) 1. Journalist who bravely asked a question to Trump during a briefing writes about what it felt like
"I trained my eyes on Trump instead of the person at the lectern. He scanned the room and noticed, just as I had been advised he would. I made a motion and mouthed something to indicate he should call on me next. He nodded and we seemed to have a deal."
2. CNN holds morning meeting to decide what viewers should panic about for rest of day
"It's always kind of tough to get our meetings going each morning, but once we got some coffee in us, we were able to toss around a few ideas on what might absolutely terrify half a million or so viewers today,"
3. What America needs next is a "Biden Unity Cabinet"
"At the Democratic convention he needs to name not just his vice president, but his entire cabinet. And it needs to be a totally different kind of cabinet — a national unity cabinet — from Democrats on the Bernie Sanders left to Republicans on the Mitt Romney right." | | QUICK HITS
- The New York Times' Katie Rosman highlights a trend of "corona-shaming" public figures for violating guidelines, from George Stephanopoulos to Ivanka Trump.
- Ellen DeGeneres is all about kindness on the air, but her staff is speaking out about the massive cuts they are enduring, even as her show airs daily still in the crisis.
- The Daily Caller noticed Hunter Biden still appears to be on the board of a Chinese company he supposedly resigned from. Biden's lawyer got a statement from the company on Friday, and that was enough to convince the Washington Post's Fact Checker! | | | One of the more glaring objectivity-free chyrons of the week from CNN: "tries to pass blame"? | | Thanks for reading! Stay safe, until next time...
- Steve Krakauer
@SteveKrak | | | |
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