PrintNovember 7, 2007
All The News That's Fit to Fake
ABC News has a lot to answer for today.
In an effort reminiscent of NBC's attempted "NASCAR Muslim Sting" last year where the network used Muslim-looking fans at a NASCAR event to attempt to show southerners to be bigoted yahoos in their reactions, ABC has been caught trying something similar. This time, with homosexual couples. Michelle Malkin:
The national ABC News program "Primetime Live" hired actors to pose as same-sex couples and engage in public displays of affection on a park bench. Birmingham police sources told the Fox affiliate about the social experiment; a local merchant spotted an RV where the ABC crew was stationed.Leaving aside the ethics questions, just what does this reveal about ABC and the media in general?
The merchant was told "ABC was working on a week-long project to see how people would react . . . A FOX6 news reporter approached the RV and talked with an 'actor' who said, 'Yes, we are working for ABC News.' " Welcome to Media Theatrics 101.
Instead of simply interviewing folks in the South or staking out real gay couples, ABC News thinks it's fair and objective to stage-manage social experiments and call it journalism. Next thing you know, they'll hire celebrity prankster Ashton Kutcher to jump out and yell, "You just got Punk'd!" as passers-by get ensnared and - ABC News hopes - exhibit the signs of prejudice they're so sure exist in Southerners.
Are they a bunch of coastal, insulated, naval gazing, elitist snobs who know no more about how most of the people in this country live than my pet cat Aramas?
That sounds about right. And note that they didn't go to California or any other "blue" state where, given the right location, their little dramedy would have elicited the exact same reaction? Perhaps not in Los Angeles. But what about some other California community where gay people are a little more scarce? Why not go there to prove their point?
Because the entire exercise was designed to show southerners to be backward, tobacco chewing, bible thumping, goober eating yip-yips.
If ABC were a real news organization, they would fire without hesitation anyone connected to this cockamamie idea. Instead, if they air the segment, they'll probably win an Emmy.
Hat Tip: Ed Lasky
