José blogged about protests over the Iranian elections and this evening I noticed on Twitter that the hashtag “#CNNFail” was a trending topic::
Another hashtag I saw was #MSMfail for mainstream media fail. In the past, I’ve looked to CNN to have some coverage, but as one “tweet” noted, the switch from analog to digital TV was the big story::
In Iran, Mir Hossein Mousavi, the reformist presidential candidate who ran against Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been placed under house arrest, riots have erupted, and telephone service has been cut. This is a big story. Are there just interns at CNN headquarters in Atlanta this weekend? Twitterers have posted coverage by various news agencies and MyNewsJunkie noted the CNN failure. One tweet had a link to another social media site, Flickr, with a slideshow of images from Tehran::
Well, if you believe the Daily Show, CNN is all over the social media out of desperation to get/engage viewers::
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| “i” on News | ||||
| thedailyshow.com | ||||
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Canadian viewers without a US proxy or HotspotShield can see the clip here, but go to 7min 40 sec mark. Comedy Network won’t let me deep link to the exact spot on the clip.
CNN seems desperate to connect with viewers seems to be dropping the ball here. ElleMac just let me know that someone at CNN directed Twitterers to the CNN International page, which has coverage, but as of 2:22 EDT, CNN.com has nothing on the home page, but there is one article on the CNN.com/World tab. On Twitter, CNN has nothing on Iran and CNNBrk has three tweets::
“Crowds in Tehran break into shops and start fires as they protest re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Are Twitterers being too hard on CNN and the mainstream media -or- is this just the state of journalism? Is this a case of CNN not really understanding what it means to truly engage in social media? There is content at CNN International and from CNN Twitterers, so why not be responsive 24/7? It reminds me of an emerging social media adage I’ve been seeing. You need to both shout & listen.
Twitterversion:: Lack of US coverge on Iranian election/protests/clampdown lead Twitterers to cite #CNNfail &#MSMfail. Too harsh or journalist #socmediafail?
HatTip:: ElleMac
Song:: Clampdown – The Clash
Comments 8
hidama — June 14, 2009
This event made me wonder if citizen journalism is the next step for media. The media company might not have anyone in Iran "live," but what Twitter users have are other users who are live updating with video, photos and bits of information while they hear it.
What we don't get, however, is a large, cohesive story. Each Twitter user is up to his or her discretion in sorting through the #iranelection tweets and gleaning information.
That's where we still need, and want, media. We need journalists to verify these facts, glean the information and narrate it.
~Just some thoughts :)
Steve@stevegarfield. — June 14, 2009
I turned to CNN for news about the #IranElection and saw Larry King with the American Chopper Guys.
http://twitter.com/stevegarfield/status/2164729857
jose — June 15, 2009
Outstanding post Ken! I'm not sure why the MSM is on the sidelines for this one. It's seems the kind of visceral drama that the MSM typically thrives on. There's no reason they can't be mining blogs and twitter streams to provide "24 hour" content.
Kenneth M. Kambara — June 16, 2009
@hidama Great comment. I still think there's definitely a need for the journalistic function and I hope the media empires realize that there is a value in news free from ratings pressure {leading to more & more infotainment}. I see social media as being important, as the people can not only express views about coverage {keeping MSM more honest}, but also provide content themselves. Plus, MSM can use social media to better engage audiences, but, hopefully, not fall prey to hoax entries on Wikipedia and the like.
@stevegarfield Yeah, I was in Toronto & CNN had canned programming, as did CBC in Canada {I'm in Toronto}. BBC had a bit of coverage & no access to Fox News or MSNBC with the Rogers Cable package. On Sunday, there was a ton of programming devoted to it & plenty of references to tweets at CNN on the topic of the Iranian election.
@José I don't know what happened. Was it a staffing issue? I honestly think it was one of protocols. Nobody with decision-making authority seemed to be aware of what was happening with the social media, so CNN {online and on-air} appeared asleep at the switch. I'm curious if social media will change how news organizations cover and respond to stories.
ThickCulture » Fire David Letterman v. Jumpstart His Ratings — June 18, 2009
[...] by rather serious events in Iran and subsequent stutter-steps by mainstream media in its coverage, David Letterman got into a dustup with Sarah Palin over allegedly tasteless jokes [...]
Sipirili — June 19, 2009
CNN made a mistake by appearing asleep at the switch this should not happen especially from a company like them. You can read more about this at http://www.aircheese.com/article/cnnfails-to-report-news
lecontito laverda — June 20, 2009
CNN's credibility is gone with the wind. CNN is unfair to people in the streets in the USA and overseas. CNN is also unfair to its own employess. CNN recently fired an employee who was dying. Mario Vela couldn't speak well, think well, of read well because of a brain tumor when CNN sent him a termination of employment package in which he was losing his medical benefits. See this video of the condition Mario Vela was in when CNN fired him. CNN is a failure now.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CV_ngsdcwFo