Assessing Television Coverage of the Bay Area Earthquake
Re “TV Reportage: It Isn’t Pretty,†Irv Letofsky’s Oct. 19 commentary on the coverage of the Bay Area earthquake:
In a major disaster, shouldn’t TV, the most potent of the media, be used in a responsible manner? Coverage of the quake was not helpful, informative or factual for the five hours I watched. Commentators struggled to give us something--anything.
Why isn’t there a TV disaster consortium immediately available for such a situation? Confirmed information could be developed through a central clearinghouse and be available to all channels. (This may sound like World War II, but the conditions suggest a similar solution.)
Media creativity can provide a better way than the present fumbling-in-the-dark approach.
JIM NORRIS, Los Olivos
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