The Media Should Pay Attention To Boys In Balloons
I’ve been hearing a lot of criticism of the media since the Balloon Boy incident and I think it’s pretty unfounded. Why shouldn’t the media stop everything they’re doing to cover a boy floating in a balloon 10,000 feet above the Earth that’s traveled over 100 miles?
I was glued to the television screen, as were many other people in my office. And from the conversations I witnessed on Twitter and Facebook, my office wasn’t the only one to have an unproductive weekend.
This was today’s Baby Jessica story. It’s had all the attention grabbing traits of a story that you’ll remember your entire life. I remember 9-11. I remember Waco and the Oklahoma City bombing and the Challenger and the Columbine shoots. And you know what…I’m going to remember Balloon Boy too. I’m going to tell my grandkids about the boy who wasn’t floating 10,000 feet above the Earth and the sick father who made freak shows out of his kids and stopped the nation with one creative hoax.
This story was newsworthy because of the questions everyone wanted answered (in order):
What in the hell is happening?
How did he get in there?
Where is it going?
How high is it?
How fast is it going?
How are they going to get him down?
Oh my God, he’s not in there. Where is he?
How are they going to find his body?
He’s where!?!?!
Did the parents know?
What did he just say to Wolfe Blitzer?
Holy crap, did he just puke?
And of course now – what are we going to do with this a**hole?
The media should cover this story. They’d be dropping the ball if they didn’t.