Full Description
This book offers an eviscerating look at the state of journalism in the age of the 24-hour news cycle by a Pulitzer Prize-winning television critic and a veteran news correspondent."No Time To Think" focuses on the insidious and increasing portion of the news media that, due to the dangerously extreme speed at which it is produced, is only half thought out, half true and lazily repeated from anonymous sources interested in selling opinion and wild speculation as news. These news items can easily gain exposure today, assuming a life of their own while making a mockery of journalism and creating casualties of cool deliberation and thoughtful discourse. Much of it is picked up gratuitously and given resonance online or through CNN, Fox News, MSNBC and other networks, which must, in this age of the 24-hour news cycle, 'feed the beast.' In dissecting this frantic news blur, "No Time to Think" breaks down a number of speed-driven blunders from the insider perspective of Charles Feldman, who spent 20 years as a CNN correspondent, as well as the outsider perspective of Howard Rosenberg, who covered the coverage for 25 years as TV critic for "The Los Angeles Times".This book demonstrates how today's media blitz scrambles the public's perspective in ways that potentially shape how we think, act and react as a global society.
The end result affects not only the media and the public, but also the government leaders we trust to make carefully considered decisions on our behalf.The book features interviews ranging from former NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw to internet doyenne Arianna Huffington, PBS stalwart Jim Lehrer, CNN chief Jonathan Klein and a host of former presidential press secretaries and other keen-eyed media watchers.
Contents
Prologue; 1. Why Is Speed So Bad?; 2. Two Revolutions: French and Mexican; 3. All the News Before It Happens; 4. Blog On!; 5. A New Protestant Reformation: Citizen Journalists to the Rescue; 6. In-depth Instant Results; 7. Desperate Newspapers Play Catch-up; 8. Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside: A Conversation; 9. What If? Scenarios, Dark and Darker; 10. 5 Grams News, 10 Grams Speculation.
