From UW-Madison student Abigail Sears:
This video clip shows CNN’s Anderson Cooper giving a speech at Hofstra University in New York last week. He discusses some interesting situations he has experienced in the broadcast journalism industry.
“I’m not much for giving advice, that’s Bill O’Reilly’s job and he does it very well,” Cooper says at the beginning of the clip. I think this brings up an important aspect of the cable news industry – deciphering between what is “news” and what is “entertainment.” Competition is a huge factor in any media market, but I think broadcast journalism is especially susceptible to blurring the lines of credibility in the quest for high ratings.
Cooper talks about how he feels his duty is simply to inform viewers at home about what is going on in the world so they can decide for themselves how they feel about it – generally the same goal of news stories in newspapers or magazines. Opinion sections in print are clearly labeled and often in their own section, but opinion programs on cable news channels often feature boisterous personalities, like Bill O’Reilly, to raise the entertainment factor and gain more viewers.
A person tuning into a cable news show to see their favorite television personality can easily misinterpret the program’s content as straight news even if the show is opinion-based. While it is vital for players in the broadcast journalism industry to somehow gain and maintain viewership, often through providing entertaining anchors or hosts, I think it is important to preserve the basic journalistic principles Cooper discusses in the video clip in mind to enhance a channel’s credibility as a legitimate news source.
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