if you think all newsrooms are like this you are an idiot. It is true most people have to move from city to city to move up in the business. How many of you would want to sit in hodunk Iowa (or name another random state, I have nothing against Iowa personally) Newsrooms are filled with recent college grads who read everything given to them. In my experience there are just as many republicans as democrats in LOCAL newsrooms. I know many of you won’t believe that fact, but it is true. Calling and yelling as a producer or manager won’t make them change their newscasts. Especially in smaller cities they don’t have the time or manpower to care about people calling for ACORN coverage, just like they don’t have the time to care about the other side yelling about whatever. If you want coverage get people together, hold rallies, send press releases made well ahead of time, get local officials together. My friends who work in newsrooms hate nothing more than people who call and demand attention and then yell about not getting what they want. In smaller cities you’ll get a cock 20 something who thinks he or she knows best. In bigger cities you get someone in their 30’s or 40’s who actually do know news better than you. The point is just calling to complain doesn’t get anything done, think before yelling.
Welcome to Free Republic.
Did you read the post? Did you read anything in the post that suggested calling and yelling to complain? Did you read anything suggesting that even calling to ask questions would result in any changes in coverage?
Nor did you read that every local newsroom across the country is exactly like the one in the piece.
By the way- as a newcomer to Free Republic you might not want to start out calling people here idiots.
And about that paragraph idea we learned in middle school..
LOL. Troll much?
Look, all kidding aside, are you seriously stating as fact that we must accept everything they spew just because they are older, that somehow age equals wisdom and they know what is news and the people don't? Are you seriously suggesting that as they age (and move up in the market) that their politics don't turn decidedly left?
Really?
By the way, calling people that share anecdotal evidence and using past experience as a guide, "idiot(s)," is hardly polite.
Oh the newbie thinks we’re all stupid. How cute!
How many of you would want to sit in hodunk Iowa (or name another random state, I have nothing against Iowa personally)
Well, I think it tends to be more based on the economics of the industry than anything else. In smaller, "entry level" markets, the pay is very low. The very first station I worked for we were airing a story on welfare reform of some kind and we had a full screen that mentioned those that were eligible for the program(s). Our production manager joked, "I think most of our employees qualify for this."
In my experience there are just as many republicans as democrats in LOCAL newsrooms
It depends on the part of the country from my own experience. Newsrooms and news departments I don't think I would totally agree, but among an entire television station or newspaper, I'd be more inclined to agree. Another aspect in larger markets is the presence of unions. One of the stations in our company has a big union presence (IBEW) and, based on 2nd and 3rd hand information, IBEW isn't exactly the best friend of conservatives or Republicans.
Especially in smaller cities they don’t have the time or manpower to care about people calling for ACORN coverage
Tip O'Neil has been quoted as saying "all politics is local". Well, to a similar extent, most if not all news is local. Stories about Hamas or Hezbollah is more than likely a local story in Jerusalem. If a person is going to call a television station, I would make sure to keep the focus on a story that would be a local one.
In smaller cities you’ll get a cock 20 something who thinks he or she knows best. In bigger cities you get someone in their 30’s or 40’s who actually do know news better than you.
I only partially agree with this, at least according to some my friends and coworkers who have made the leap to the vaunted Top 50 markets. The cocky (I assume that's what you meant to type) 20 somethings often do make the leaps and I'm not sure they really "do know" news...again, much of this paragraph is based on 2nd and 3rd hand info from my friends further up the showbiz food chain, so take it for what it's worth.
The point is just calling to complain doesn’t get anything done, think before yelling.
Completely agree. Screeds are more for the kids at DU and Kos.