In my MCOM 105 Media and Diversity class, we were asked to watch the BBC World News, and then a regular network world news show and make comparisons. As I had never watched the BBC before, I didn't know what to expect. I watched the BBC World News at 4:00 PM and ABC World News at 5:30 PM on Tuesday, September 5, and the differences to me were quite interesting.
On the BBC, the main stories (in this order) were: the Mexican election, NATO in Afghanistan, and Tony Blair'’s planned resignation. There was also a bit on Pakistan'’s agreement with the Taliban and the layoffs at Intel, as well as a few other shorter features.
On ABC, the story of Pakistan's agreement with the Taliban was featured first and discussed in more detail than on the BBC. Next on ABC was a look at the toll 9/11 took on rescue workers which may suffer lung problems as a result of that day. The layoffs at Intel, the change in executives at Ford, and the oil drilling in the gulf were featured; the Mexican election was discussed, but seemingly it was not considered a major story since it came near the end, just before short blurbs about autism and John Lennon.
Overall, I think the BBC took a more critical look at the stories it was reporting. In talking about the Mexican election, the BBC talked about rumors of ballot fraud and the agenda of the U.S., which favored the winning candidate. In the piece about NATO in Afghanistan, the BBC showed the reality of the war, with images of crying soldiers carried caskets back home. It also commented on the harsh conditions and how the war might continue for years to come.
ABC, on the other hand, did not seem quite as balanced. Instead of looking at both sides of the Pakistan story, the reporters took the opportunity to push the view that Pakistan is just creating a safe haven for terrorists. ABC featured lots of footage of Bush; more, I think, than was necessary. I also thought it was interesting that ABC hinted in the Pakistan story that Pakistan could be harboring Bin Laden, and then the next story they showed was about 9/11. Can we say, leading the audience?
5 comments:
i like BBC too! i also got into to it because of a class i took during my first semester here. i also wanted to take mcom 105 but it was full. how is it? a lot of work? who's your professor and how is he/she?
I like 105 so far; if you take it, I recommend Dona Nichols. She has us do a lot during class so there isn't much homework. Just be prepared for the discussions because they're worth 30% of your grade!
I bet the BBC doesn't have much to say about Tom Cruise's baby, either.
Good topic, thank you.
thanks for the tip! btw, does prof. nichols say anything about the journ club because i know she's the advisor? she said she'd get back to me when she has more info, but she hasn't yet. are you a member? if so, what exactly do you as a club? when & where? thanks again!
Dona hasn't said anything about the club, sorry.
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