Television Rocks The World!

I love television.  I mean, I really love television.

For 24 hours, a remote desert in Chile hosted an amazing feat of courage, ingenuity, determination, hope and faith.  And it played out on live television.

That’s right, live TV!

The internet is an amazing thing.  It stores a wealth of information, products that improve productivity, provides us entertainment, helps us connect with each other and has spawned deep and rich content that is growing almost as fast as the universe.  The opportunities the internet and new technology present for journalism are terrific.

But most of the hundreds of millions of people worldwide who witnessed the initial hours of the Chilean Mine Rescue watched it on that box that we’ve had in our living rooms for 60 plus years.  Oh, the number of televisions we have in our homes keeps increasing.  

In the hour the first miner was plucked from the earth, ratings for the cable networks exploded.  CNN had 4 million viewers, Fox News had 3.5 million viewers and MSNBC recorded 1.1 million.

The Chilean Mine Rescue adds to the list of events that unfolded live on television and were reported as history when they hit the front pages of news papers the following day.  

Here are a few of the live big stories I would consider history in the making:

·         The Kennedy-Nixon Debate

·         The JFK assassination

·         The Lunar Landing

·         Nixon’s Resignation

·         The first Space Shuttle launch

·         The Challenger Explosion

·         The 2000 Presidential Election

·         September 11^th

·         The Iraq War Shock and Awe

·         Hurricane Katrina

·         Obama Inauguration

·         Chilean Mine  Rescue

Add to that the big events in local communities and there is still immense power in television.

Maybe Google TV will change the way we consume the information from big news events.  Until then, I’ll keep on loving TV!

New Worries About "Fake News"

Here it comes again.  Free Press has filed a complaint with the F.C.C., warning that it’s on to local television stations that pass off “Fake News” as the real thing.   I’m anxious to find out how we, as an industry, have done!

As a bit of background here, the group is referring to Video News Releases (VNR) and Satellite Media Tours (SMT); company or government sponsored news releases which television newsrooms use wrongly.  The activist group calls the VNRs and SMTs “paid propaganda.”  News organizations are supposed to disclose the sponsor or face stiff fines from the F.C.C.

Free Press teamed up with the Center for Media and Democracy in 2006 to release a 10 month-long study that found 77 television stations across the country had used VNRs without disclosing from where the material came.  

Surprisingly, the violators weren’t just in small markets, where training on such matters with young staffs is virtually nonexistent.  It happened in big and medium markets where the knowledge base and staff size is much deeper.  

Embarrassingly, the station where I worked was included on the list – despite having a VNR policy in place.  The policy is something I picked up along the way and have added to and revised.  I’m including it here for anyone to use or provide me feedback so the policy can be even better. 

We in the media are under assault from all sides.  There is more competition, fewer of us who do investigative work, and the public is losing its trust in the stories we report.  

Ridding newsrooms of carelessly used sponsored material is low-hanging fruit.  Clear training and understanding of policies makes us more transparent – which the viewer is demanding. 

It’s not just VNRs that damage our credibility.  Remember the “Zim Zam Yo-yo Champion” making the rounds earlier this year?

Yeah, it’s a good laugh – only because it didn’t happen to us!

38 Pages of Similac Recalled Product

Here is the entire list of recalled Similac Product. Recalled Lot Numbers

Similac: Alternative Products If You Have Recalled Powdered Formula

Similac's recall website is having trouble keeping up with the amount of people who need information.  I was able to get through to portions of it.  This is the company's PDF regarding substitutions.

Click here:
Similac Product Substituion

Abbott Voluntarily Recalls Certain Similac® Brand Powder Infant Formulas That Did Not Meet Its Quality Standards.

Abbott is initiating a proactive, voluntary recall of certain Similac-brand, powder infant formulas in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Guam and some countries in the Caribbean.

Abbott is recalling these products following an internal quality review, which detected the remote possibility of the presence of a small common beetle in the product produced in one production area in a single manufacturing facility. The United States Food and Drug Adminstration (FDA) has determined that while the formula containing these beetles poses no immediate health risk, there is a possibility that infants who consume formula containing the beetles or their larvae, could experience symptoms of gastrointestinal discomfort and refusal to eat as a result of small insect parts irritating the GI tract. If these symptoms persist for more than a few days, a physician should be consulted.

The recall of these powder infant formulas includes:

• Certain Similac powder product lines offered in plastic containers.
• Certain Similac powder product lines offered in 8-ounce, 12.4-ounce and 12.9-ounce cans.

To immediately find out if the product in your possession is included in this recall, parents and caregivers should visit www.similac.com/recall/lookup, and type in their lot number to determine if their product is affected, or call (800) 986-8850.

No Abbott liquid infant formulas are impacted. Products not involved in the recall include all Abbott Nutrition liquid ready-to-feed and concentrated infant formulas and all powder and liquid specialty formulas, such as Similac Expert Care™ Alimentum®, Elecare ®, Similac Expert Care™ Neosure ®, Similac® Human Milk Fortifier, and metabolic formulas for inherited disorders.

About the Recall

• The company is implementing a plan to address this matter in the affected manufacturing facility, which is expected to be completed shortly. No other facilities or products are involved in this recall.
• Abbott has consulted with the U.S. FDA regarding this recall.

Information for Parents and Caregivers

• Products with affected lot numbers should be returned to Abbott at no cost to the consumer.
• Parents and caregivers can go to www.similac.com/recall/lookup or call Abbott's consumer hotline, (800) 986-8850, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• Both the website and the consumer hotline have specific details on how to complete the return process.

Holger Liepmann, executive vice president, Abbott Nutrition said:

"Abbott understands that parents expect to feed their children only the highest quality product. We are taking this action so that parents know that the infant formula products they provide unquestionably meet the highest quality standards for which they are known. We regret any inconvenience this situation poses to parents and consumers."

About Abbott

Abbott is a global, broad-based health care company devoted to the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of pharmaceuticals and medical products, including nutritionals, devices and diagnostics. The company employs nearly 90,000 people and markets its products in more than 130 countries.

Abbott's news releases and other information are available on the company's website at www.abbott.com.

We are here to answer your questions:

Consumers and Retailers 800-986-8850     Healthcare Professionals 800-545-5216   Contact Us   Find Replacement Product

Recall Resources

Recall Information Is My Formula Affected? Consumer Returns Retailer Returns Healthcare Provider Information

A Little Effort With A Big Payoff

One in seven Americans now lives in poverty.  More startling is that one in five children is living in poverty. 

 

It’s not surprising that these numbers from the Census Bureau’s poverty report unearth another consequence of the on-going economic crisis, even though economists said this week that the recession is over.

One in five kids—heart breaking.

Fortunately, there are amazing people whose life mission is to help those in need.  You’ll start hearing about those agencies more and more in the next six weeks as we enter the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons.

One such agency that I’ve always supported is the local food bank in what-ever-city I find myself in.  I’m fortunate that I have had the power of a television newscast to give voice to the true heroes who collect and distribute food with the precision rivaled only by a Google algorithm. 

If you have never had an opportunity to visit a food bank operation center, you’re missing something special.  These are amazing places that do everything from collect donated food, grow it in their community gardens, or make it in a 21^st century version of a soup kitchen.   The common needs of all food banks are volunteers, donations, and advocates.  As you would expect by the poverty numbers, food banks aren’t lacking people in need.

If you can find an hour or two in your busy schedule to sort through some cans or make some deliveries, do it!  It is a very rewarding experience.  Even if you don’t have the time; pick up some extra cans of food or jars of peanut butter and find a food drive where you can donate.  That’s pretty rewarding too. 

Obviously, you can Google food bank and your city.  But I tried to make it easy for you to find further information.  This site lets you search for the organization in your community. 

http://feedingamerica.org/

Local Media Needs To Capitalize On NFL Turmoil

The NFL expects an increase in blackouts this season because the economy continues to struggle and fans cannot afford a weekly trip to a football game.  Without a sell-out, the NFL refuses to let the game on local television.

There will likely not be professional football to watch on Sunday afternoons next year (or Monday nights or Thursdays for that matter).  NFL team owners and the players association are at odds over a collective bargaining agreement.  Unless some major compromise happens, players will be locked out.

Among other things, the lockout fight centers on money; players want more and the owners don’t want to give it to them.  Look, both team owners and most players make enormous amounts of money.  I really don’t care who gets what share.  Making loads of money is part of the American dream.  I applaud each side for trying to make their dreams come true.

What I care about is that local media and its professional organizations use the turmoil to our advantage.

Many of you may not know that the NFL has really put the squeeze on local media in the past couple of years.  First, the NFL wanted sideline photographers to wear vests with a sponsor logo on it and as threatened that if we refuse to agree with terms, we lose the credentials to cover the game.

The RTDNA and attorneys at Wiley Rein have done their best to fight for stations rights.  They have won some battles, but the advantage tips in favor of the NFL.  I’ve listed some of the provisions we have to agree to in order to cover a game:

• Video of NFL games is limited to six  minutes per newscast on game days
• Video of NFL games is limited to two minutes and only for the follow seven days after a game
• NFL prohibits local stations from sponsoring “Play of the Day” type video clips
• No logos can appear on NFL highlight video (even our station bug!)
• All video obtained by a local photographer is the property of the NFL
• Above video restrictions apply to station material

• On-line archive any video, even that shot by our sideline photographers is prohibited
• Texting or blogging game-in-progress information to our websites is prohibited
• Quarterly updates permitted

So, the NFL maintains it controls the video we obtain within a stadium or NFL practice facility.  And while a fan can Tweet about a play or a score – a journalist cannot on a station’s website.  In fact, just today, The Washington Redskins banned Tweeting and blogging during the team’s practice.  It’s unfair the NFL has that much control, especially since taxpayers have funded building those facilities.

I understand the NFL is trying to protect its interests.  And this is where we must capitalize on the current NFL turmoil.

Local television, newspapers and radio stations are the economic engines that have, in many cases, allowed NFL teams to grow and prosper.  Think about all the video we used to use for everything from daily coverage to the half-hour specials that hyped the community’s team and the team’s franchise players.  Yes, we’ve used the teams, but only an inkling of how much the NFL has used us.

So after the 2010 season’s increasing blackout rates and 2011’s lockout, the league will need to reestablish its good will with fans.  I suspect the local media will be a key part of the NFL’s strategy.  Knowing that, we must recognize the value local television stations and websites can provide teams.  We must communicate that value to the league and leverage it into long-term agreements for better access, reduced restrictions and money making opportunities of our own.

September 11th With Web 2.0

It’s the eve of an anniversary that forever changed all of our lives.  September 11, 2001.  It’s been nine years.

I have vivid memories of that day.  I was on my way to work in Orlando.  As I listened to the breaking news on the radio, the reporter who was describing the first impact of a jet into a World Trade Center tower was drown out by the sound of the second jet hitting the second building.

In the newsroom, the images were powerful.  Tears were free-flowing.  People shook as they watched the unbelievable sights.  There was panic and uncertainty about the safety of family and friends.  Those images weren’t those coming from the televisions.  The images burned into my mind are that of my co-workers who huddled around the four televisions in the newsroom to watch the tragic events unfold.

Obviously, the constant replays of the jet hitting, the fires, the crashing towers, scared people running, the rubble, the heroes, the tears and the fear are forever engrained.

Now, imagine if that horrible event happened today. 

Just nine years later, cell phones are mini-computers, capable of taking pictures, video, and even live streaming.  Twitter has become a powerful breaking news resource with the number of tweets upwards of a 65 million per day.  Other social networks can pinpoint your location and posting pictures can reach millions instantly.

What power everyone has in the palm of their hand.

If you were moved to tears by the voice mails, left on now ancient answering machines, the morning of September 11, 2001, could you imagine the emotions current technology would invoke today?

I enjoy seeing pictures of family vacations on the social pages of my friends and family.  I like the speed of getting news fast on Twitter. 

But, think about the images, videos, and messages that would have come out of those buildings and airplanes if then, those victims had the advances of today’s technology.  Bone-chilling!

There is territory that we in the media haven’t conquered.  Fortunately, we haven’t really been forced to climb that slippery slope just yet.  On the eve of this solemn anniversary, what I would do as a news manager with such material is something I’m thinking about.

As a husband, father, and son, I have decided that, if ever faced with recording one last message (God forbid), I’m going to pass.  Instead, my messages of love and hope for my family will unfold in my life actions.

In U.S., Confidence in Newspapers, TV News Remains a Rarity

In U.S., Confidence in Newspapers, TV News Remains a Rarity