robert55

Actually, aside from the BBC News and the occassional network news, I don't watch very much television. The point I was trying to make is that the negative bias the television networks have toward the Big Three can't be doing very much to help sales and/or buyer confidence in their products. A good case in point was an article in yesterday's WSJ regarding a settlement Toyota made with Camry owners over recurring sump problems. The article was buried in the back of the Journal and I didn't find it on any of my usual news sources. If it had been Ford with the problem it would have been front page in most newspaper and the lead in most business segments on the evening news. Nor am I insensitive towards the layoffs inthe auto industry. I used the analogy of the cancelled television series to show the way television networks gloss over their failures. Also, why don't we ever hear about the respective layoffs and corporate problems at GE, Westinghouse or Disney?? BUT I did feel ABC News did a better job with their segment last night, pesonalizing the on going problems the auto workers face. The stories I've read have dealt more with the corporate aspect of the crisis, when the workers and their plight is the true story.

I'm watching ABC's coverage of the "Detroit Problem", which comes down to the usual hand wringing about the horrible shape the auto industry is in. Which makes me wonder who gave the news media the right to throw stones at Detroit?? Thirty years ago there was another Big Three in America; ABC, CBS and NBC. Today there are the obvious Big Four [the aforementioned and FOX] along with several dozen major and minor cable channels. The average viewship of the the big three is nothing compared to what it was in 1976, yet where are the news stories about the diminishing network viewership and ratings?? News reporters often fixate on the quality problems of American cars. Yet we hear nothing similar when a network cancels or a television series [in ABC's case, a high concept series like "Invasion" or "Joey" on NBC] or when a series receives terrible reviews [does anyone really watch "According to Jim" or is it on just to fill for dead air??]. The CBS Evening News [the Ford 500 of evening news] has been subtly revamped several times since it's Katie Couric's premier, but that just isn't mentioned. And with all the layoffs and closures at newspapers and magazines, why isn't that reported to the same degree as the layoffs and closures in the auto industry?? Myself, I find the Internet much more convenient and, yes, cheaper than newspapers and magazines; also the immediate nature of the Internet has made most magazines [especially automotive magazine] obsolete. But why isn't this threat discussed as openly as the threats to the auto industry?? Finally, has anyone ever approached the news media about their basic conflicts of interest?? CBS is owned by Westinghouse, NBC by General Electric and ABC by the Disney Organization. Each of these corporations has international dealings with other corporations and certainly must weigh that in what they all their media outlets to report. [i watched the 1976 movie "Network" over the weekend, a major reason behind this posting] I just wish that, rather than apologizing for their bad performance or making promises for the future, the next auto industry executive would turn the tables on an interviewer and discuss the aforementioned points. Of course, it'd never be aired, but it might make the news media think twice before their next attempt to generate ratings through hypocrisy. Thank you for your time.