You Give TV News a Bad Name

I saw something the other morning on the Today Show that made me yank great chunks of hair out of my head and feel very ashamed to say that I work in TV news. They did a story on a woman who was stabbed to death by a carjacker because she would not surrender her car. She was trying to protect her baby who was in the back seat. If the story wasn’t bad enough, they came out of it to a shot on the couch, and Meredith introducing the woman’s husband and TWO OTHER CHILDREN. She insisted that everyone wanted to be on the show to talk about what a wonderful wife and mother she had been, but every time she asked the son (who looked 13) and daughter (who looked 10) a question, they became so upset it was hard to answer.

Here’s my question: WHO’S GREAT IDEA WAS IT TO DRAG THESE KIDS ON LIKE A MORBID DOG AND PONY SHOW? I mean, really. Are we so greedy for ratings that we stoop so low?

I don’t care if the kids DID insist on coming on the show. ADULTS should have better sense than to let this happen. If there’s some producer sitting back and thinking they scored a coup by dragging grieving children on air to cry over their murdered mother, that producer SHOULD BE SHOT.

At this point, I am extremely disgusted to say I work in the same medium and hope my bosses have the good sense never to stoop so low.

P.S. AFTER THE HORRIBLE INTERVIEW, MEREDITH TOSSED TO WEATHER. Talk about an awkward transition.