thoughts on media coverage as we approach the 2004 presidential election

Subj: NPR
Date: 7/19/2004
To: Silverdew7



As a listener of WRVO, the local NPR station for Syracuse, NY, I would like to express a hope (and a reminder) concerning the upcoming 2004 Presidential elections. Few may recall this, but in 2000, when the race promised to be one of the closest ever, virtually all of the network television stations broadcast their usual lineup of soap operas and talk shows during the day of the election. Perhaps if they had taken more of a responsibility to inform people just how close of an election it was throughout the day, more people would have been prompted to vote. Instead we had to wait until the night of the election for substantive coverage, and by then many of the polling places had closed.

We cannot afford to make the same mistake with the 2004 Presidential election. NPR should be praised for its election coverage, but, unfortunately, the majority of people rely on the television networks for their information. It is the responsibility of the media to supply news and important information when it is so plainly required, and not to continue to pump their tired stream of diversions. Who knows what might have been if more people were informed in a timely and dedicated manner of how close the 2000 race was? And if the 2004 race is close, I for one do not want to turn on my television on the day of the election and find soap operas and talk shows.

As a final thought, it may not be the station programming managers who are to blame, and that is not necessarily a good thing. Rather, it points to a more deeply embedded problem with network broadcasting content. No one who wishes to make an informed decision to vote should have to watch soap operas and talk shows on the day of a Presidential election. Bad enough they're on the rest of the time.

So please, big business execs and shadowy figures, at least turn off the mind-numbing pipeline for this one day, for the sake of America.

Silverdew7.aol.com / Francis DiPietro
WRVO, Syracuse