Koppel: "Emphasis on what interests our most favored commercial customers"

[electropop]

Ted Koppel, commenting on his departure from Nightline, in an NPR interview (approximate quote from memory):

"More and more in recent years, the emphasis seems to be on catering to the interests of our most favored commercial customers."

[MadHound]

1. Well thanks for being honest Ted

I would have been nice if you had screamed about this a few years ago, but better late than never.

This is the problem we have with the media today. They see their prime duty is to cater to their commercial customers and those in power, rather than being honest news brokers and actually report what is happening. This problem has been exacerbated by the monopolization of the media, brought about in large part by Clinton's '96 Telecom Act.

Hopefully other journalists who still have some integrity left will start to make a major case about this, but sadly, they probably won't. Their six and seven figure incomes buy a lot of silence, and we the people suffer the consequences.

[blm]

2. Creeping fascism. They needed media to make it happen so they BOUGHT IT.

.

[warrens]

3. His producer was on NPR this morning and made another point

Advertisers don't give a shit about you if you're under 18 or over 49. All those dead pregnant women stories get play because they appeal to 25-39 affluent women. He said, the only reason we got advertising at all is because we were on late at night, when the old folks were asleep.

[KoKo]

5. What? His producer must be a dummy. All those older folks gave up

on Nightline when the commercials started to be the same length of time as the commentary... :eyes:

I can't see many 25 to 39 years olds sitting up when they have to get to work and the kiddies off to day care and school the next morning.

Sheesh what are these folks smoking that they are insane like this.

[Supersedeas]

10. No way...the growing number and length of commercials have no impact on

viewship....lol

[Al-CIAda]

4. A moment of honesty. Welcome to fa$ci$m.

[earth mom]

6. Media = Whores?

No surprise there! Bastards! :grr:

[Marr]

7. And there is the explanation for the media's pro-invasion coverage.

[tgnyc]

8. Now that he's banked his tens of millions of dollars, he speaks up.

Thanks Ted.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

9. Years ago I heard a former NPR reporter talk about how

corporate underwriters would call and complain about stories or prospective stories. She had worked hard on a story exposing exploitation of the poor by financial institutions, and her story was spiked because one of NPR's underwriters, a major investment firm, had gotten wind of it and threatened to withdraw their support.

Frankly, if I had been news director, I would have let the story run with the added line, "And Gotrocks Financial Services has threatened to withdraw its support because it can't stand to have the truth revealed."

Just as I would have responded to the Reagan and Bush administrations' denial of access by saying things like, "We asked Under-Secretary Toad Lizard to comment on Lydia Leftcoast's accusations of wrongdoing, but he refuses to appear on television with anyone who disagrees with him or asks unrehearsed questions."

[never cry wolf]

11. Randi Rhodes has a good point on this issue in general

Not Nightline specifically but she has said often to take note of all the commercials by large corporations that really have nothing to sell to the public, such as Archer Daniels et al. Why do they buy time? Specifically so that they can pick up the phone and have a say over content.