Who Reported It First? Who Cares.

By Aunt Sam on Mon, 07/09/2012 - 4:39pm |

Amy Sullivan writes:

(Within the report, this and much more.)

Can we talk about the nonsense of caring about which news outlet first reports a big piece of news? I’m not talking about a genuine scoop—a report that wouldn’t have otherwise come to light—but about news that we’re all eventually going to find out anyway. Who Mitt Romney selects to be his running-mate, for instance, or whether the Supreme Court upheld the individual mandate..................

Because if this is just about bragging rights, it needs to stop. Now. And not just because it can lead to some outlets rushing to report incorrect information, as CNN and FOX did with the recent Supreme Court decision on health care reform. But because the race to be first is no longer just a feature of news coverage but often the main factor driving it.

Ah, good work and on point.

URL:

http://www.tnr.com/blog/plank/104754/who-reported-it-first-who-cares