Day 7

Tonight I stayed with TV news, but went national with the PBS News Hour. I watched a half-hour segment of the show. It was a very different experience from last night's local news. Here we go:

PBS News Hour at 6:00 PM

I watched a half hour of this hour-long national news show. The broadcast contained far more information than last night's local broadcast. At 6:00, when I started watching, there was a 2-minute segment on the large storm affecting many parts of the nation. This was followed by a short, 5-minute summary of some important current events topics, which included an upcoming Supreme Court case on the Affordable Care Act; a potential conflict between China and Japan; and the US/Afghanistan talks, as well as some others. In the remaining time that I watched, 3 stories were covered in depth. The first was a 3-minute segment on the potential China/Japan conflict, the second was a 10-minute segment on the issue of illegal immigration and deportation under the Obama administration, and the third was a 9-minute segment on the conflict on Syria. All of these topics were covered in depth, with extensive background information. The news format consisted of the news anchors providing background information and updates on the issues, then interviewing experts on the issues. In total, the broadcast included extensive quotations from 8-10 experts, as well as 3-5 film clips from those involved in the issues (such as President Obama and the leader of the Free Syrian Army). The interview with a Wall Street Journal journalist about the China/Japan conflict was objective, and the coverage of Syria included speakers for and against US involvement in Syria; however, when immigration was covered, the only speakers were a law expert with moderate views on the immigration debate and a pro-immigration member of the National Immigration Law Center. This suggests a liberal bias. The show, however, is an example of objective reporting and presented a balanced view of most topics.

The PBS News Hour was far more informative than WBZ Evening News. Unlike the local news, this show was very dense with information, only interspersed with quick slides of online news media and PBS programs between the introduction of topics. Instead of passively absorbing the news, I had to focus to keep up with and comprehend all the information. The interviewers' questions were thoughtful and they also seemed well-informed about the issues. Overall, the tone was much more serious than the WBZ News; there was no music, no banter between news anchors, and no flashy graphics; visual content was restricted to footage and images relating to the topics. This news coverage is clearly aimed at a more educated viewership; the language is fairly intellectual and there is no hint of news-as-entertainment. Although I occasionally had trouble following the broadcast and understanding the issues, I think I would get used to it if I frequently watched this show. The PBS News Hour was highly informative and I would strongly recommend it to viewers looking for a serious TV news program. However, I would also supplement viewership of this show with additional research of the topics and issues; I detected a liberal bent in the discussion of US government issues and viewers should seek arguments for the other side of the issue if they feel that there is a pronounced ideological bent in a media source.