Local Television: Soft News Is the Hard News Story of the Day

In a country of 330 million of course acts of kindness charity and humanity abound Firemen extract kittens from trees socially conscious 10yearold39s sell their toys to fund relief for the needy neighbors join together to mow an old guy39s overgrown lawn Given how often Americans help each other the reservoir of stories is bottomless Nonetheless however uplifting the soft news segments it39s time for a change A president who is putting people in danger not curbing a pandemic is the reason whyAs the coronavirus upends American lives from coast to coast the threeminutes of quotawwamp8230quotinspiring vignettes are too important to wait for the news hour39s 40minute mark They need to air regularly at the top of the show The reason they39re an invaluable teaching tool about the public health crisis Lives depend on them as does the country39s fight to curb a pandemic that isn39t going to be over by Easter or extinguished by the mix of baking powder and Baby Ruth bars that President Trump had a quotgood feelingquot about the other dayLocal news is crucial in combatting the coronavirus Nearly half of the country still relies on broadcast and cable television for their news on global and national as well as local events Local news outlets also aren39t just an information source surveys make clear they39re considered the most credible by viewers who trust local news purveyors more than the national sort The implication is obvious Hometown news can have a disproportionate influence on an audience that pays attention when its neighbors are on the screenWhen it comes to COVID19 let39s stipulate how well local news teams are doing their quothard newsquot job Atlanta where I happen to live is a case in point Along with exceptional coverage by the Atlanta Journal Constitution and Georgia Public Radio broadcast journalists are using technology as well as courage to tell stories about the coronavirus across the metropolitan area and elsewhere in the state Their work is not only commendable but it also testifies to journalism39s inestimable contribution despite the political and financial challenges facing the tradeThere39s another reason why local news is crucial the fact that the president who should be accurate as well as authoritative in the coronavirus crisis is incapable of presenting a straight story about the pandemic The result is hurting the effort by others to educate and protect the public That39s where the local news comes in Whatever their political views Americans generally pay attention to what39s happening next door including the plight of neighbors Their fates put familiar names and faces on stories that can seem abstract or even less credible if told from Washington or another city thousands of miles awayIt39s what makes soft news stories into a teaching moment for instance about the importance of social distancing Their three minutes can have an impact even the finest public servants behind a White House podium can39t conveyThe raw material to help correct the misrepresentations is readily available The Ad Council the advertising world39s platform to produce public service announcements is working with the administration and the major networks to inform Americans about COVID19 on broadcast cable and digital platforms The pro bono announcements on how to stay healthy and safe can easily be cut and pasted into local stories adding important educational content to human interest at the top of the hourBusinesses provides a similar motherlode to help debunk disinformation From momandpop shops to multinationals thousands of American companies are stepping up to ease the burden on families and frontlines forces such as hospitals confronting the pandemic and its effects Fast food free to doctors and nurses deferred loan payments for furloughed workers and retooled production lines to make surgical masks rather than jeans only scratch the surface of their stories they are all local news somewhere about leaders who take the crisis seriouslyTo be sure Trump has done damage to more than public understanding of the pandemic He has made the jobs of mayors county executives and governors amp8212 as well as public health leaders doctors nurses and healthcare workers amp8212 more difficult In addition to calling criticism of his COVID19 performance a quotDemocratic hoaxquot Trump is leading his minions to politicize the pandemic as the quotWuhan virusquot to obscure his administration39s inept response Expect worse as the November election nearsIt39s all the more reason for local news to double down in doing its part A lie as a wag once wrote can travel halfway around the world before the truth puts on its boots Soft news can help the truth catch up when the White House turns it away at the doorDon39t stop now Stay in the know with Kent Harrington39s expert commentary on today39s political landscape and on needed accountabilityClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet

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Local Television: Soft News Is the Hard News Story of the Day

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Kent M. Harrington

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Local Television: Soft News Is the Hard News Story of the Day

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