When I [Erin] first heard the news of Michael Jackson's alleged passing, it was on TMZ. I rolled my eyes. The first thought through my mind was- yeah, right. Leave that poor man alone.
I didn't believe until it was reported by CNN, which I consider to be a legitimate news outlet.
But you know what? TMZ was right. They broke the story. It was unbiased. It was accurate.
[original post: http://www.tmz.com/2009/06/25/michael-jackson-dies-death-dead-cardiac-arrest]
But will it make me take them more seriously next time?
Probably not.
As communications professionals, it is our responsibility to seek out various news outlets. Televised, print, online- the more variety, the better, in my opinion. We almost have to because it is in our nature to doubt:
Who is behind this story? How are they spinning this?
We think- This is for publicity, for attention, for blog hits, for a mention. And, often, it is.
I consider some media outlets on both sides of the political spectrum [Fox, The New York Times] to be so wildly unbiased that I take in their news with enough grains of salt to season a salmon fillet. But, I figure, the best I can do is read/watch as many sources as I can and walk away with my own opinion.
What media outlets do you consider the most reliable and why?
Which media outlets would you most want to pick up your client's product?
Oprah?
Favorite Things episode?
Yeah, us too.
