WSFA

This article was for Ken Hare's class in early November 06. We had to hear Don Logan speak and then write an article.




According to Don Logan the chairman of Time Warner who has experience and extensive background in the field of journalism, there are “four principles that are critical to the journalism profession: credibility, independence, ethics, and quality.”
In a newscast that is already jammed for time, WSFA feels compelled to create a minute towards an opinion spoken by their general manager.
For example, Alabamians are voting on Amendment 2, which is an amendment to require all counties to have a minimum of 10 mills of property tax to account for education funding.
WSFA has now played the Amendment 2 opinion twice. The opinion was shown last week. Then, the same opinion was shown on the eve of the statewide election, which included the vote on Amendment 2.
The news station of WSFA is giving the citizens of Montgomery and the tri-county area a disservice.
They are campaigning and pushing for Amendment 2.
Ethics should be questioned.
The opinion also made Amendment 2 a wedge issue.
During the general manager’s spoken opinion, graphics of young children in education settings were used. Then, at the end of the opinion, “Vote YES on Amendment 2.”
How is one portrayed with a vote of NO? If one votes no, then one must not care about the education of children.
Does the word ethics hold any water?
WSFA’s six o’ clock newscast consists of: sports, plugging their website wsfa.com, flashy graphics, music, three segments of weather, and now a minute of the general manager’s opinion. All of the elements just listed take away precious time from this thing called “news.”
The Montgomery local news leader finds itself covering sports stories in the segments designated for news. Last week, during a six o’ clock newscast, WSFA covered a high school football game, which included two, playoff bound football teams in Luverne and Brantley. The story could have easily been presented in the Sports block of the newscast.
WSFA is lacking quality.
Apparently, quality in journalism is becoming an issue. According to a 2004 poll conducted by people-press.org, quality of coverage was the second biggest issue on the local level. Quality of coverage was the second biggest problem with thirty- three percent, only trailing Business and Financial with thirty-five percent.
In a recent Montgomery Advertiser article, two Montgomery City department heads received a pay increase, while other city employees have yet to receive their merit raises.
What’s the hold up?
The budget has yet to be passed. In fact, the City of Montgomery is working off of last year’s budget.
Where is WSFA?
Yes, they are covering the delay of the passing of the new budget, but they have failed to pressure city government in regards to the two department heads pay raise.
Opinions in a thirty minute nightly news show should be treated like the seperation church and state to government.
Cable news have blocks of news. Then, there are talking heads such as: LouDobbs, Paula Zaun, Bill O' Reilly, Chris Matthews, and Tucker Carlson.
They are never mixed together.
If WSFA wants to get into the opinion of things, so be it. Just don't waste a whole minute of it and cut into actual news time. If the general manager wants to do his own little blog and thus, plug the website once more, that is fine. Opinion is not appropriate in an already crammed thirty minute newcast (less than thirty minutes of a newscast due to commericals).
Newspapers endorce political candidates in the opinion section. Opinions or endorcements made by the Montgomery Advertiser are never made directly next to or in an article in relation to an election race or issue.
News is always around and available to be found. News of substance also follows suit. WSFA must realize that news is not just a crime report here and there followed by a blueberry, peanut, watermelon, or anything under the sun fesival happening in rural, small town Alabama.
While WSFA’s news coverage has recently been soft, their fascination with music and flashy graphics has intensified. WSFA appears now to favor presentation over the actual product. One is inundated with an attempt to lure you in with hype due to the mood of the music and the urgency of “breaking news” and “top story” in eye popping colors and blinking and moving words. Despite all of this, one can expect to sometimes find the hyped story only to fall prey to the teleprompter and/or video malfunction.
Watching a WSFA preview feels more so of a movie preview than of a news segment.
WSFA is failing to meet two of the four journalism priciples stated by Don Logan and failing the citizens of the tri-county area.