Scooped?
The Times Leader has claimed another questionable exclusive. As a blog reader points out, Saturday's "exclusive" on the downtown college bookstore was actually reported days earlier by Wilkes University's student newspaper, The Beacon. Apparently the Times Leader thinks "exclusive" means "We got to it before the Citizens' Voice did."
posted by Howard Beale at 1:10 PM
9 Comments:
I'm sure I read it even earlier, on my program for the blind on WRKC. It would have been from the Voice. I don't keep back copies of the news I broadcast, but I know I saw it before this. If anyone from the CV is reading this, maybe they can clear my memory one way or the other.
What do you care Howard? Why do you keep picking on the Times Leader anyway? Methinks you're part of a certain alliance.......
I said two things when I first started this blog:
1. I'm not commenting about who I am or where I work.
2. I wasn't limiting my commentary and opinions to TV news. When I see something interesting on the radio or newspaper side, I'll talk about it.
An "exclusive" story generally means you were the first person to report on something that otherwise would be left untouched, or got a vital piece of information that nobody else got. For example, Watergate was a huge exclusive, because the Washington Post first broke the story, and did the most in-depth coverage.
Today, "exclusive" is one of those words that's lost its meaning. Every station or newspaper likes to think they got the "exclusive" because they were the first to publish a story based on already-available information. The Times Leader is guilty of that. First, the "exclusive" on Don Sherwood that merely rehashed his public campaign records. Then, the "exclusive" on the downtown bookstore that was covered by a college newspaper days earlier.
That's why I mentioned it. And if I see any of the Times-Shamrock's newspapers doing the same thing, I'll call them out on it too. Same as if WBRE, WYOU, or WNEP ran a questionable exclusive.
I'm an equal opportunist when it comes to criticism. :)
I beg to differ with your definition of exclusive. It's not just first, it's only. From dictionary.com:
A news item initially released to only one publication or broadcaster
so if the TL reports on a bake sale, and the CV doesn't, are they supposed to promote that as an exclusive?
They wouldn't have to...but they very well might.
This comment is an EXCLUSIVE to Beale's Bites, which is listed (perhaps unbeknownst to its author) on NEPA Blogs!
http://nepablogs.blogspot.com/
"I beg to differ with your definition of exclusive. It's not just first, it's only. From dictionary.com:
A news item initially released to only one publication or broadcaster."
By that definition, The Beacon got the exclusive on the bookstore. The Times Leader came along, days later, and then claimed they had the story before anyone else.
Am I missing something here? A bookstore in downtown Wilkes Barre as an exclusive? WOW!!!
It is a good story, hope it happens, WB needs it, but unless the name Barnes and Nobles or some other chain is attached, it is just a bookstore.
TL or CV: How about an investigation into the drug trade in WB, not just police blotter stuff, but really digging and reporting. Or may a lot of people in town believe the only switch in Tom's made last mayor's race was in last name only...
That's not going to happen. The TL is too busy suing Luzerne County's DA and slapping "EXCLUSIVE!" on their police blotter, and the CV is too busy teaching their reporters to bury the lead in their stories.
Post a Comment
<< Home