A New Landscape for American News

The culture of news is undergoing seismic change. In a sometimes frantic search to reclaim audience, the press has become thirsty for sensationalism, entertainment, and chat—areas that rake in the rankings quickly and oftentimes cost-effectively. Exhaustive coverage of the JonBenét Ramsey murder case and TomKat’s baby girl, Suri are just two recent examples. Similar tabloid-like stories often trump more acute and "newsworthy" events such as the war in Iraq and have news networks reevaluating how we perceive and receive news.

In fact, on Sept. 5, 2006, the evening news was given a facelift.

Until then, the sole players of the nightly news were erudite, middle-aged men with serious demeanors. Now, a perky, blond-haired woman armed with a golden smile has entered into the picture and is challenging the “girl news” versus “boy news” dichotomy that morning and evening broadcasts have usually fallen into. Couric's new role rekindled an old debate posed by Washington Post staff writer, Howard Kurtz: “Why do people watch one newscast over another?”

Unlike her predecessor, Walter Cronkite, Couric has taken a non-traditional approach to reporting. With segments like “Free Speech” and “Snapshots,” her newscast adopts what Kurtz calls a “chattier” or, in my opinion, more “Sunday Morning” style approach than a “hard news” approach. From her story selection to her relaxed anchoring, "CBS Evening News" raises further questions and concerns about the crossover between entertainment and news. Now, media critics are jumping at the opportunity to attack more than just controversial cable news shows. But are their criticisms truly warranted?

I think Couric should be applauded, rather than criticized or feared. She takes risks in her reporting in a time slot that has remained relatively static. She doesn’t offend viewers, but attracts a new type of viewer—one who is multitasking and looking for news in creative ways. It is true that the serious style of reporting has weakened, and it is also true that there was a time not long ago when our living rooms were connected by anchors who brought our country together in moments where we all shared a national commonality. Moments of fear, of war, of political scandals and more. We can’t ignore this fact. Our job as journalists is to find a way to address it and to better it. If Couric can appeal to more female viewers and younger viewers, I say good. She's innovative. As expelled in the RTNDA Code of Ethics, the goal of a journalist is to “gather and disseminate information.” It does not specify the exact content of this “information.” If Couric can get more people tuned in to the news, no matter how traditional or untraditional this news and its presentation may be, I think society is better off. She has embraced the mixed-media culture in novel ways. Many ridicule Couric and classify her with fluff news. I think they are just hesitant to accept a female anchor who can smile.

-JG

Howard Kirtz’s article on the "Couric Report" can be read here.

To read about the state of the news media visit here.