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April 07, 2005

Sede Vacante

As I'm sure you all know - that is, if you're not living in a hut in Botswana - Pope John Paul II (né Karol Wojtyla) died on Saturday from, officially, septic shock and heart failure. Not the most glorious way to go for someone who was a terrific sportsman and who survived multiple brushes with death (including once being hit by a truck and left for dead). Regardless of what you might think of him (and Bob knows I don't exactly have a high opinion of him either) his death has sent a shockwave throughout the entire world. After all, he was the spiritual leader of over a billion Catholics and the third longest-reigning Pope of all time.

Predictably, this was huge news for the cable networks.

Not long after Terri Schiavo died - the source of yet another media blitz - the news networks went on full Pope alert, quickly (and thankfully) pushing the entire Schiavo fiasco off the front page. For a full day and a half the media kept close watch of the lights in the windows outside of the Pope's apartments in St. Peter's Square, breathlessly awaiting Vatican press releases like, well, a news network. Or a crazed stalker. Whatever.

Also predictably, the news networks were eager to scoop each other - so eager, in fact, that Fox and CNN announced the death of the Pope a full 26 hours before it actually happened.

Kind of says something about jumping the gun. I just feel sorry for the producer who, unaware she was next to an open mic (the translator's) that was on air, announced to the FNC audience that the "Pope is dead...Hello, Pope is dead". Shepard Smith was understandably livid.

She'll probably never work in the news business again. Unfortunate, yes, but I don't think it's entirely her fault. But, as Fox News has seemed to refuse to learn again and again, checking facts is a good thing. At least CNN took pains to mention that the reports were unconfirmed.

It was around this time that MSNBC began running their "Fair and Accurate" promos, a gleefully evil slap in Fox's face. I won't say that Fox didn't fully deserve it.

The worst part about it, for them, was that when Fox and CNN found out that the Pope wasn't dead, they got nervous 26 hours later when the news came down the wire and this time waited for confirmation. As a result, according to Cable Newser, MSNBC beat both of them by a full three minutes. An eternity in the broadcasting world.

Now, this sort of thing, news networks using major world events as tools in their rivalry, is not new. This is what happens when ratings are more important than actual newsgathering. Did you know that, over the weekend, while cable news was doing Pope stuff the whole time, a US plane crashed in Albania? That there was major flooding along the east coast? That Terri Schiavo was cremated?

Think about that: the death of one man was enough to put all other news on hold for a day.

Consider: Pope John Paul II is a man who:


John Paul II's funeral is tonight, and with that end comes the end of an era. For good or bad, the Pope was a giant. Was all this news coverage warranted? I'd say not really, because there is more important news out there. But no other person in recent memory really had the far-reaching influence of John Paul II. His memory will live on for years to come, whether his name be praised or reviled. One thing is for certain, though: work's gonna be busy for weeks.

Posted by Dalton at April 7, 2005 04:27 PM

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