Tsubject: Tsunami

I'm writing this in response to recent posts by my esteemed colleagues, Hockey Dino and Intense Auburn. In short, their posts and discussion were addressing media coverage of the catastrophic earthquake and resulting tsunami in Japan. I encourage you to check them both out before reading further (click on the links above).

The crux of the debate seems to be the scope and prominence of the human interest side of the media's coverage. Too much? Too little? Just right? I find myself to be a bit of a centrist in this discussion.

First and foremost, I want the hard news. How big was the quake? What's the situation with the nuclear reactors? How many killed? How high were the waves? And being a visual person, I want pictures....lots of them. Not being morbid...it's just that the uncontrollable forces of Nature are both fascinating and terrifying to me. And in this instance, I don't think that the hard news part of the story can actually be sensationalized...the facts, statistics, and scope of the disaster speak for themselves.

That being said, I also believe that a certain amount of human interest reporting is not only germane but also necessary to balanced reporting of any natural or man-made disaster. And here's why I say that: We are all human...one big family, no matter where we live. In many cases seeing others trying to deal with the loss of loved ones and belongings can inspire us to be better people. We can be reminded of what is really important and how blessed we are. Equally as important, and on a practical note, telling the story of the suffering inspires people to donate money to the Red Cross and many other organizations that are providing aid and comfort to the survivors.

Here's my idea of appropriate human interest reporting: the story of the 60-year old man who was found 16 kilometers off of the coast, clinging to the roof of his house. Miraculous. Incredible. Choose your own adjective. Very newsworthy. And appropriate for reporting.

What is not appropriate? Shoving microphones under peoples' noses...people who are grieving the loss of everything they owned...and maybe the loss of someone or everyone they loved. This is not news. Whether it's tornado victims in Kansas, hurricane victims in Louisiana, forest fire victims in California, or tsunami/earthquake victims in Japan or Indonesia, raw grief is raw grief. Allow these people the chance to grieve privately. We don't need to see it close-up to understand it. I'm reminded of the lyrics to Don Henley's great song "Dirty Laundry":

"The bubbleheaded bleach-blonde

Comes on at 5

She can tell you 'bout the plane crash

With a gleam in her eye

It's interesting when people die

Give us dirty laundry

Can we film the operation?

Is the head dead yet?

You know the boys in the news room

Got a running bet

Get the widow on the set

We need dirty laundry"

Also not appropriate: interviewing anyone who has or ever had a relative in or near Japan. This is where the media train leaves the tracks in a big way. No one cares. Just report the freakin' news.

Anyhow, just throwing my two-cents worth in on the subject. Not saying I'm right or anything, just have an opinion like everyone else. I will say one thing about the Japanese people. They truly live out their principle of "Gaman". Loosely translated, this means to handle whatever comes your way with grace and to be patient. And if you've watched much of the coverage, you've seen this principle at work. People conducting themselves with great dignity in the face of overwhelming sadness. Cars backed up for miles to buy gasoline and not a single honking horn. Nobody outside of their cars. No fights. Maybe we could take some pointers....