We understand trailing MSNBC and Fox News in ratings has them on edge, but that’s no excuse to cut corners!!
CNN, like every other news outlet in the United States, focused around-the-clock coverage this week on the tragic bombings at the Boston Marathon.
Unlike most of those other news outlets, CNN’s Peter King boasted to have “EXCLUSIVE!” information that suspects were arrested and the network blindly ran with it for much of Wednesday afternoon.
As we’d later all find out, CNN and Mr. King were very very wrong — no arrest was made at all!
Maybe Peter’s source was a liar. Or misinformed. Or imaginary.
We don’t know, but millions of folks were trusting CNN and they dropped the ball!
While reporting rumor as fact is certainly one way to jazz up ratings, there is often dire consequences. Credibility, for one, is all but lost!
As one source from within CNN itself said:
“As I think everyone knows, we really f├óΓé¼ΓÇ¥ed up. No way around it.”
Well, at least that guy or gal has the gall to admit it!
Another source at CNN anonymously spoke to a different media outlet, but they didn’t sound too broken up about flubbing facts during a crisis.
They said:
“Our reporting [Wednesday] was based on three very credible sources. After King pulled back his reporting he was on the air almost every hour walking it all through. He was extremely transparent, and did a good job explaining it all. Something should be said for stepping up and owning it.”
We agree! Something should be said!
How about this?
We understand how hard it is to stay on top of a breaking national tragedy, and it’s immeasurably more difficult to keep viewers tuned in the whole time, but you guys have a responsibility to the truth — stop getting it wrong, please.
[Image via Twitter.]
