The Fog of War
Issue #136 — News networks need to tread carefully in covering the war between Israel and Hamas, as other issues are starting to murky what initially seemed a clear-cut war.
The Fog of War
News networks rushed their seasoned reporters and marquee talent to the Middle East after Hamas’ surprise attack on Israel.
The big names of Anderson Cooper, Lester Holt, David Muir, and Norah O’Donnell were quickly dispatched to the region, joining war-ready reporters in providing coverage of a war that is evolving in complexity as the days pass.
Having these anchors in place signifies particularly to U.S. viewers the importance of the war and the attention it should receive. Hamas was the aggressor, preying upon and murdering numerous Israeli civilians.
This war, unlike the war between Russia and Ukraine, is not clear-cut, even though Hamas initiated the attack like the Russians did in 2022.
Israel understandably is seeking to avenge the attack and is responding with all its might, looking to dispose of, get rid of, and silence Hamas.
That is the simple version of what is happening, but this war is getting complex as the historical religious significance of the region between Jews, Muslims, and Christians is considered, and a deepening humanitarian crisis primarily affecting the Palestinians comes into focus.
How these networks cover the war with this additional context will be vital to ensuring that their viewers are adequately provided with the correct information.
Already, MSNBC is receiving some heat after allegedly taking its three Muslim hosts out of anchoring duties. The network is strongly pushing back, stating that this is not the case, and has provided proof that these anchors are still on air.
It’s also embroiled in an internal dispute among employees as a network-wide support group for staff who felt grief over the conflict turned into chaos as a result of who the support group is for and who should or should not be represented.
The BBC meanwhile had its headquarters in London sprayed with red blood as pro-Palestinain groups protested its coverage of the war.
As the war trudges on, with the possibility of more countries contributing in some way, coupled with the mess that is taking place on social media concerning verifiable and accurate information, the news networks may be the best place to turn to find accurate information about the ongoing war.
However, news networks need to tread carefully in how they cover this war as viewers who are being bombarded with lies and misinformation from all fronts are looking for accurate reporting and proper context regarding what is happening on the ground and as well as the other bubbling issues that are arising in the perimeter as the conflict drags on.
Newsrooms are more diverse than in previous wars, and so news network leaders have to be cognizant of this dynamic and understand that a broad brush depiction of events on the ground may not be the best approach and may unsettle some within the newsroom.
It is a different war this time around, and news networks must cover it in a way that accurately accounts for Israel's response to the atrocious nature in which it was attacked, but at the same time, not forget that the civilian Palestinians are victims too and should not automatically be lumped in together with Hamas.
The area has a long geo-political history that will now get even more complicated.
It is a tightrope for news networks to walk on, but it is a challenge they can successfully meet if they approach it with the sensitivity and sensibility it deserves.
(Semafor, Mediaite, The Guardian)
ISRAEL-HAMAS WAR QUICK RECAP
Israel-Hamas War: CBS News President Wendy McMahon says 10% out of more than 1000 videos the network has sifted through are usable. (Axios)
Israel-Hamas War: News correspondents describe how it is to cover the war. (TVNewser)
Israel-Hamas War: How are TV correspondents dealing with the carnage they are witnessing? (Deadline)
Israel-Hamas War: How are seasoned correspondents being tested on their ability to remain steady as they report on the massacre with descriptions of violence? (Los Angeles Times)
Israel-Hamas War: Why is the BBC not calling Hamas terrorists? (BBC)
Israel-Hamas War: How the news nets scrambled to cover the war. (Variety)
Israel-Hamas War: CBS News’ Tony Dokoupil makes it personal and talks about his kids and ex-wife based in Israel. (TVNewser)
Israel-Hamas War: CNN and Fox News have dominated ratings since the start of the war. (Mediaite)
RECAP
Bally Sports Arizona Shuts Down Its Operations
With no baseball, basketball, or hockey to show on its air, after 27 years, Bally Sports Arizona ceased existing as a sports network this past Friday. BSA became the first regional sports network to go dark because its parent company, Diamond Sports Group, filed for bankruptcy in March. In a tweet, BSA alerted viewers that it is “no longer providing coverage of your local teams,” Bally Sports Arizona tweeted, “We sincerely thank you for your viewership over the years.” The heavy debt of DSG, which the company told the court was $8.67 billion, was the primary factor in BSA’s demise. The RSN’s inability to pay its media rights dues caused the Phoenix Sun and the Arizona Diamondbacks to quickly jump ship, with the Suns moving to local TV and the streaming service Kiswe and the Diamondbacks games being picked up by the MLB. As for the Arizona Coyotes, they were the last team to serve ties with BSA, with their games being picked up by Scripps Spots. Will the remaining Bally Sports RSNs see a similar fate? (Awful Announcing, Arizona Sports)
The Mark Thompson Era At CNN Begins
The start of the Israel-Hamas war has kept CNN busy as the network devotes a lot of time and resources to covering the conflict. This is happening as Mark Thompson, the network’s new Chairman and CEO, begins his tenure running the news network. Thompson’s official start was Monday, but he had already been spending time meeting talent and staff at the various CNN offices prior to this week. Not wanting to distract his staff from the primary task, Thompson officially introduced himself to staff via a video message where he praised the network for how it was covering the war and freed it from covering the both sides’ political angles. However, he was blunt in his critique of its digital strategy, saying that it was not where it needed to be, but outlined that it needs to be better prepared for a digital future, saying, "TV is vital ... but TV is also too dominant at CNN and digital too marginal." He added that CNN's digital products today "lag well behind the current state of the art." (Deadline, Oliver Darcy/Threads)
How Long Cable News Covered Select Public Figures
What political news stories kept the cable networks busy? The Israel-Hamas war has become the top story across all news networks, but prior to that, there were specific political stories that each network favored, and its viewers were okay consuming. According to data pulled from the Stanford Cable TV News Analyzer, Fox News spent more time on Hunter Biden in the past year than MSNBC and CNN. The conservative and right-leaning network averaged 27 minutes per month on Biden. The network also prioritized covering the president’s son over 2024 presidential candidates, most notably Ron DeSantis, devoting 12 minutes per month. MSNBC and CNN, meanwhile, dedicated significant time to covering former President Donald Trump and DeSantis, with MSNBC harping more about Trump than CNN. MSNBC’s mentions were more than four times as frequent, on average per month, than mentions of the current president "Joe Biden" — and seven times more often than that of his son. President Biden received the most attention from Fox News, averaging 56 minutes of coverage per month, with the majority of it not positive coverage. In comparison, the former president averaged 33 minutes per month, with that coverage skewered to the more friendly side. (Axios)
QUICK RECAP
Health: Barry Melrose to step away from his ESPN duties to focus on his Parkinson’s diagnosis. (ESPN Front Row)
Media Business: AT&T's John Stankey on what went wrong with the TimeWarner deal. (Semafor)
Profile: TNT's lead studio analyst, Wayne Gretzky, on how the NHL has evolved. (Vanity Fair)
Politics: Former MSNBC and Current TV host Cenk Uyghur announces presidential bid. (TVNewser)
In: This past Tuesday, Lisa Ling made her CBS News debut on CBS Mornings. (TVNewser)
In: Former ESPN college basketball analyst LaPhonso Ellis joins the Big Ten Network. (Awful Announcing)
Legal: ABC News settles sexual-misconduct suit with former Good Morning America producer. (The Wall Street Journal)
Legal: Former CBS News 60 Minutes producer Alexandra Poolos sues for gender discrimination. (TVNewser)
Design: NBC News makes subtle changes to its special report graphics. (NewscastStudio)
Design: SportsNet Pittsburgh debuts a new look. (NewscastStudio)
Streaming: Say goodbye to cheap bills as streaming costs increase. (Los Angeles Times)
Streaming: How the leaders of CNN and MSNBC are steering their networks towards the streaming era. (Variety)
Streaming: Netflix's CEO Ted Sarandos says ad tier is not yet at the scale they want it to be. (The Wrap)
News Business: BBC News’ flagship news and current affairs program, NewsNight, is bracing for steep budget cuts. (The Guardian)
News Business: CBS News and Stations to create a new division focusing on data journalism and climate initiatives. (TVNewsCheck)
News Business: A BBC internal review finds no promised open roles for BBC News presenters. (Deadline)
News Business: BBC News’ CEO Deborah Furness to invest more in BBC Verify. (PressGazette)
Ratings: MLB on TBS had its most-watched NLDS coverage in eight years. (Warner Bros. Discovery Sports U.S. PR/X)
Ratings: ESPN's Monday Night Football game was the most-watched week five game with 17.4 million viewers. (ESPN Press Room)
Ratings: NFL on CBS is enjoying its best 5-week start since 1998. (CBS Sports PR/X)
Ratings: ESPN's Oklahoma vs. Texas college football game was the most-watched game of the week for the 5th time in 6 weeks. (ESPN PR/X)
Ratings: NBC Sports has the most-watched week 5 Sunday Night Football game ever. (NBC Sports Group Press Box)
Sports: ESPN2 to simulcast ESPN Deportes’ Monday Night Football coverage of the Dallas Cowboys vs. Los Angeles Chargers game. (ESPN Press Room)
Sports: Why did CBS Sports’ football A team of Jim Nantz and Tony Romo call the New England Patriots and Las Vegas Raiders game? (Awful Announcing)
Sports: Fox Deportes acquires English-language rights to Mexican National Team friendly soccer matches. (Fox Sports Press Pass)
Sports: CBS Sports will debut an NFL RedZone-style show for the NWSL's Decision Day. (Front Office Sports)
Sports: Big Ten will have nine college football games on Friday in 2024. (Awful Announcing)
Sports: WBD Sports launches a postseason baseball alternate cast that caters to the Hispanic community. (Variety)
Sports: Diamond Sports Group and the Orange Bowl Committee agree to end the AutoNation Orange Bowl Basketball Classic broadcast. (A.J. Perez/X)
Sports: CBS Sports Sean McManus on what he told Tony Romo for him to be a better in-game NFL analyst. (Awful Announcing)
Sports: ESPN's Joe Buck and his wife filled in for Scott Van Pelt on the MNF pregame show after Van Pelt lost his voice. (New York Post)
Sports: ESPN's Pat McAfee pays Aaron Rodgers for his show appearances. (The Daily Beast)
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A MarkHenry Media LLC publication - Issue #136 - 2023