Thursday, September 5

September 11th Television Coverage - Phil Rosenthal makes some very good points in the Chicago Sun Times about why viewers should be weary of network television coverage on September 11th. While I know that others would disagree with me, I think The Onion does a much finer job proving the point than I ever could. As noted in my previous posts on Lisa Beamer, even with my rabid consumption of television, I think that there are some things that don't need to be in the public eye. For me, grief is a private process that is different for every individual, and commemoration in the form of crappy "live team coverage" and splashy graphics packages simply undermines the emotional weight of the anniversary. And, on a practical note, what good does 24 hours of coverage really do? Won't most people directly affected by September 11th be attending events in person? Won't most of us not directly affected be at work during the day? But, as Rosenthal notes, I don't think that any of us will forget what happened last year at this time.