Apparently journalists are amongst some of the least trusted people in the world but given that this is an era where advertorials and puff pieces are daily additions to the papers and sensationalism is key to selling issues and chasing ratings that’s little surprise.
In steps ABC’s Media Watch. Using footage from news networks and newspaper cuttings (with added voiceovers) the show looks at examples of poor journalism partly for humorous ridicule but also to flag up instances of unethical practices or shoddy, tabloid reporting that cares more about being first and making sales than facts.
News Corporations upset by Media Watch
Newspapers and broadcasters need something to keep them in line – watching the watch dogs as it were – as some very often fall out of line by falsifying facts, printing misleading information or simply making stuff up to suit their agenda. It’s not Australian news corporations that need to tidy up their act with the internet being a common source for erroneous reporting and pointless stories no organisation in the world is safe from their vitriol.
Media Watch comes with the slogan “everyone loves it until they’re on it” which given some of the responses from targets is all the more fitting. During the 20 year anniversary special former host Stuart Littlemore noted that Media Watch isn’t for the journalists but for a public who deserve to be told when they’ve been misled or the people who want to respond to reports that unfairly distort their image.
Few take criticism lightly and The Australian is perhaps the most damning in its replies. Although most of these take the form of editorial comments aimed at Media Watch yet they are given adequate time to comment before the show goes to air. An editor of The Daily Telegraph even sent a dead fish to the studio. Media Watch was axed in 2001 for investigating claims about ABC’s then head Jonathon Shier but returned a year later when Shier was himself given the boot.
Mullumbimby High School Reports
Each episode typically begins with a pithy observation and a quick witted response from the host which may come across as smug and some of the mistakes raised border on snobby pedantry at its most petty but the sections that highlight lack of ethics and deceit are played seriously.
A recent example is the ensuing media circus that has invaded Mullumbimby High School following the death of a pupil started a debate about intrusion after a tragedy and the lengths some reporters will go sensationalise, as certain sections have suggested the school has a culture of violence. As ever suave presenter Jonathan Holmes and Media Watch are there to wag their fingers but this sort of tasteless journalism will continue and possibly only increase as profits decrease further. If anything it will give the folks at Media Watch more material to dissect.
Watching the Media
Worldwide it’s not alone in its condemnation of journalistic integrity (or lack thereof) with publications such as Private Eye joyfully taking shots at the mainstream press. The BBC had a similar newspaper review show What The Papers Say that used almost identical voice samples to Media Watch when reading headlines or copy but unfortunately it was cancelled after 50 years of service. Thanks Auntie, it means more money can be spent on important things like BBC Three sketch shows and keeping Graham Norton employed.
In USA The Daily Show occasionally takes an irreverent view on broadcast news coverage and Fox News has been running a daily 24-hour parody of an immoral and manipulative media network since its inception in 1996.
The problem with a lot of modern television is that some shows have ridiculously long running times for no particular reason (sitcoms and “reality TV” are chief offenders) and instantly drag once the 25 minute mark has passed. At a light quarter of an hour Media Watch could easy stretch on for double the length and still be entertaining and informative. As it stands however the programme is funny, insightful, frightening and easy to digest. Unlike the morning paper.
Media Watch is on ABC1 every Monday at 9.20pm
 |
