2.04 Broadcast- Television

For this assignment, I decided to go with worldwide news and watch CNN. CNN is a 24 hour news channel where ranges from places like Ferguson, Missouri, United States to Hong Kong, China. There were discussions over the Ferguson case and racism in the U.S. being apparent in the amount of African Americans being arrested. There was an interview conducted on CNN contributor L.Z. Granderson, an African American himself, about how police act towards his race. The compare and contrast shows that 1 in 10 black men are incarcerated while the rate for white men is 1 in 20. Personal experience was expressed here by Granderson as he comments about these shocking results, "The first time that an officer pulled a gun out on me, I was 12 years old. He told me I looked like someone."

Other than the people being interviewed, there were no opinions being expressed. CNN tries to keep it very unbiased, and I don't blame them because they have millions of viewers worldwide. They are one of my first sources on world news, especially when watching television. In the evening the hosts may sit around and talk about certain topics, expressing opinions but also letting viewers call in and express theirs on the air. This is a very much appreciated feature for me on this news channel, but it gets annoying when a caller talks about a topic that they clearly don't know anything about. 

I must say, CNN was very effective in informing me about topics. I learned a little more about the Ferguson case and the Umbrella Movement in China. I have to say my favorite by far was the gamer they interviewed, Cosmo Wright, who finished The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time in under 20 minutes. What I think CNN does right: (1) The feature where viewers can call and express their opinions is pretty smart of them. I mean, what fun is it if you can't get involved? (2) Not expressing personal opinions, but letting the viewers know it's their own opinion when they do. What I think could be better: (1) Maybe the station should start screening the callers before putting them on the air. Some people just don't know what they're talking about. (2) They don't really show both sides of the story. Okay, maybe the stories I listened to didn't have more than one side. Or maybe they just give the facts.