Local news’ devastating political one-sidedness
I founded and taught “Media Criticism” at Towson University for two full decades, and I never pushed one ideology or another. Nor was I ever accused of such bias. Serious television, radio and newspapers and magazines should broadcast and publish with the same news disinterest in mind.
I don’t watch much local news in Baltimore, save for Fox News, as the others have cancelled me without notice due to either my refusal to more strongly support their point of view or maybe just general irritation at my perceived arrogance.
Arrogance? Me? Cannot be the case – I never stoop to arrogance.
So, last night (Saturday), I atypically watched WJZ-TV — I watched their coverage of “No Kings” protests in Baltimore on their 11 o’clock news show. And 13’s reporter, despite one short blurb of Andy Harris’ praising the general freedom to protest-turned her report into what seemed like full-fledged support of the protest. Her apparent contempt for those who were the object of the protests – anyone who supported Donald Trump or his administration – appeared as great as her arguable worship of the wealth of 18 year-olds’ (yes, and some older) screaming their outrage at the alleged existence of “kings’ ” allegedly running the United States’ government.
I’ll burden you dear reader, with just one typical unprofessional moment in the report: a protester said she was upset about the “terrible things“ Trump supporters were saying.
Hmmm…what follows should be an example or two of those wretched utterings. The reporter [Kaicey Baylor] didn’t even ask for one example that upset her — such absences were evident throughout the report.
The viewer did not hear one example of why the administration was allegedly acting like “kings.” Or why protesters wanted to stop those who said or did them. Or why the reporter or the station disapproved of the existence of metaphorical kings in power or, again, how we would know them when we saw them.
WJZ…we hardly knew ya.
Denise Koch, you have a career-long record of mostly good reporting — you interviewed me often before I was cancelled by the station.…are you proud of this type of yellow journalism?
The coverage, I am told, was similarly empty of reportorial sophistication over at WBAL-TV. But to be fair, I didn’t see it.
There is a way to cover political or contentious events wherein different sides get to have their arguments heard.
Covering the angry issue of the validity of claiming that “pro-kings” philosophy runs our government is not overly difficult.
Quoting one Republican’s saying that everyone has the right to protest is woefully insufficient for telecasting the salient issues in the dispute.
Richard E. Vatz https://wp.towson.edu/vatz/ is a Distinguished Professor Emeritus of political rhetoric at Towson University and author of The Only Authentic of Persuasion: the Agenda-Spin Model (Bookwrights House, 2024) and over 200 other works, essays, lectures, and op-eds. He is the benefactor of the Richard E. Vatz Best Debater Award at Towson. The Van Bokkelen Auditorium at Towson University has been named after him.