Long ago, I quit watching the evening news on NBC, ABC and CBS. Here’s why.
On Jan. 22, there were at least four major world news stories breaking -- news that adversely affects the security of America and our key allies.
Shiite rebels in Yemen -- backed by Iran -- were holding Yemen’s President Hadi captive in his home. Hadi had been a key American ally in our efforts to destroy the al-Qaida fighters in Yemen.
Abubakar Shekau, the leader of Boko Haram in Nigeria told the world in a YouTube video that the murder of 2000 women, children and elderly in the Nigerian town of Baga was “nothing compared to future attacks” that he was planning, and justified Boko Haram’s mass murder saying God commanded the massacre!
The Islamic State vowed to kill two Japanese hostages unless a $200 million ransom was paid within 72 hours.
Then at 5 p.m. (EST) on Jan. 22, King Abdullah,
King of Saudi Arabia, died. In President Obama’s words, “As a leader, he
was always candid and had the courage of his convictions. One of those
convictions was his steadfast and passionate belief in the importance of
the US-Saudi relationship as a force for stability and security in the
Middle East and beyond.” His death comes at a time when the Saudi state
finds itself surrounded by enemies: Iran to the East, The Islamic State
to the North and now Yemen to the south.
So, on Jan. 22, 2015 what was the lead story on
the three major networks? What did NBC, CBS and ABC choose as their most
important news items of the day?
What item did NBC run for the first three minutes and 45 second of its “Nightly News”?
To what story did CBS devote the first two minutes forty-five seconds of its “Evening News?”
And what story did ABC deem worthy of approximately four minutes and forty seconds of coverage on its “World News?”
Inflate-gate! (profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/01/22/deflategate-leads-all-three-network-newscasts/)
-- NBC Nightly News: “On our
broadcast tonight, full denial from Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and
from his coach, as a football inflation scandal remains bigger than the
upcoming Super Bowl, as the question remains: Who or what was
responsible?”
-- CBS Evening News: “Tonight,
caught in a pressure cooker: Is Tom Brady a cheater? Quarterback Tom
Brady responds to reports that the Patriots used deflated footballs in
the AFC Championship Game.”
-- ABC World News Tonight: “On
this Thursday night, the breaking news, the scandal before the Super
Bowl. The star quarterback, Tom Brady, answering the question: Are you a
cheater? Tonight, how Brady explains those deflated footballs, who
handled them after they were handled by the refs, and what now for the
football star with the supermodel wife?”
Was Inflate-gate really the day’s most important
story? I fully understand that NFL rules require that game balls be
inflated to between 12.5 and 13.5 PSI.
But is the fact that 11 footballs were
under-inflated by 2 psi each, more important for the American people
than the stories itemized above?
For starters, is anybody really claiming New England beat Indianapolis because balls were under-inflated?
The Patriots won the stupid game 45-7! Was it
under-inflated balls that made it possible for Legatee Blount to run
through the Colts for 145 yards? Or was it superior blocking, or
inferior tackling?
Then again, if the idea of under-inflating a football is to make it easier to grip, what’s the big deal?
In wet weather the refs wipe the ball off and
cover it with a towel to make it easier to grip. They bring dry balls
into the game!
Quarterbacks use hand-warmers to warm their hands.
At least six quarterbacks -- not to mention
almost all the wide receivers -- use special tacky gloves. Indeed Nike
advertises their gloves as “Magnigrip CL palms with Nike graphics for
superior tack and grip in all conditions.” Superior tack means they are sticky.
So, at a time when the whole Middle East is
blowing up, and at a time when the sundry Muslim factions are murdering
anyone who dares to disagree with their faction’s, views, why are the
major networks -- and even Fox! -- wasting air time with Inflate-gate?
To borrow a phrase from our illustrious erstwhile Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, “What difference does it make?”
Of course, if a properly inflated football really
is a significant matter of world news, why can’t each team select 12
balls of their choice (as is presently being done), give them to the
refs, and then have the refs randomly put the balls in play without
reference to whom supplied them?
That way if there is a significant advantage to
using an under-inflated ball, there will be a 50-50 chance that that
advantage might acrue to the other team.
And maybe the networks will focus on real news.
Posted: Sunday, February 1, 2015 12:10 am - Quad-Cities Online
Copyright 2015
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