Like most of you, we’ve been getting our coverage of the Democratic National Convention from the Internet, cable news channels, and the Daily Show. But we like knowing that our local news channels are at these national dog-and-pony shows to cover the stories from a local perspective.
Which is why we were shocked when Boston City Councilor and Massachusetts delegate Mike Ross reported that WBZ had no presence at the convention. Surely that wasn’t true?
“It’s true,” WBZ’s Director of Communications, Ro Dooley Webster, tells Boston Daily.
While WCVB, WHDH, FOX25, and WGBH all sent reporters to Denver, Boston’s CBS affiliate elected to use the network feed for its local newscasts and online coverage. Even WBZ political commentator Jon Keller is watching the proceedings from the East Coast.
“The network has vast resources covering every aspect of the convention,” Webster says. “We’re confident that we’re serving our local viewers.”
Sure, WBZ viewers will know that Ted Kennedy gave a speech and that the Massachusetts delegation cheered him wildly. But if all local media relies on the big network coverage, the moments of unscripted humanity that make the conventions worth watching may go unnoticed.
Whether it’s Joe Battenfeld explaining the ridiculous getups or Blue Mass Group interviewing a Massachusetts delegate that was moved to tears by Kennedy’s speech, we don’t want to miss the small stories that help us get the big picture, even if we are watching them online. Thankfully, we have embedded blogger Mike Ross to keep us up-to-date.
Logo from WBZTV.com
1. You’re criticizing a local media organization for not sending staff to the convention, and yet the best explanation you can give for not following your own command is that you “can’t deal with high altitudes”? (That’s what it said on the front page at bostonmagazine.com, in a teaser to the Ross Report.) This makes no sense.
2. Resources are better spent covering local news, rather than following the pack of thousands of reporters who are acting as stenographers at the convention. Kudos to WBZ for spending its money wisely. I’m not sure what poignant “moments of unscripted humanity” you’re looking for in an event that produces absolutely no news, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen one. Ever.
Investigating and news reporting at WBZ CBS 4 Boston appears in decline anyway and not sending reporters to the Democratic clearly shows profits and not news reporting comes first. Those who follow accurate investigative broadcast journalism are still recovering from the shock of not seeing anymore the Dean of Boston Investigative Broadcast Journalists.
Award winning investigative journalist Joe Bergantino of WBZ CBS Boston’s Channel 4 Investigative I-Team departed the station after 22 years. This departure is most shocking and the meaning not only to viewers but to those who want to report, waste, fraud, abuse, and corruption and are considered sincere “whistleblowers”. This loss of a key confidential ally is immense and will not easily replaced. Bergantino’s departure has shaken the underground advocates network of “whistleblowers”. A major ally in the lonely battle against government, business, labor, and consumer waste, fraud, and abuse is being lost.
Bergantino was a consummate trusted professional with a deep heart and soul that went to extremes to shield his sources always protecting and never exposing. His longtime associate Paul Twomey and later Maggie Mulvihill were always considerate and sensitive to conscientious persons having the courage to talk and come forward.
Joe Bergantino’s many investigative stories ranged from Boston’s Central Artery “The Big Folly”, political corruption, to business scams, and the priest sex abuse scandals.
Under his leadership, Bergantino was one few Boston investigative reporters regardless of impact on his career who dared to take on the sham of the Boston Big Dig from the outset standing up to the Democratic Administration of Governor Michael Dukakis and later of succeeding Republican Governors of Weld, Celluccci, Romney, Swift, and even the current Governor Deval Patrick. From the $2.3 billion mismanaged project to the over $16 billion today, Joe Bergantino had the courage to expose waste and abuse often alone.
Bergantino was dismissed, belittled, attacked. and dismissed for his reporting on the Big Dig from the special interests of the Big Dig Artery crowd of developers, contractors, labor bosses, local and national politicians, consultants, and vendors.
Joe Bergantino’s formula was accuracy and cutting through rhetoric of falsehoods. Bergantino was always willing to meet with sources around the clock to listen, process information, and determine the right course of action. If the information being received would result in gross or additional economic harm, he would advise and step back always working to protect the person coming forward. Bergantino if determined the information was not presentable to the broadcast medium would advise other methods.
However, in the era of the Big Dig various federal and state designated oversight agencies could not be trusted. This ranged from the local FBI undergoing the fallout of the Whitey Bulger Scandal to the political appointees of both Democratic and Republican local US Attorneys and State Attorney Generals. Their track records of prosecutions, recovery, and oversight are almost non existent.
Bergantino continued on exposing the Big Dig always giving sanctuary to any and all who contacted him or his usual staff of one in a no nonsense professional manner. Boston CBS4 even in years of high revenues never gave adequate resources to Bergantino to do his stories. Yet, he continually moved on achieving excellence and high quality journalism.
The current economic difficulties facing both the broadcast and print media is making investigative journalism harder to achieve. Information being received in the 21st century is much different than before. The citizens are not reading newspapers and watching news programs or holding government accountable at all levels. The instantaneous ability of the internet to give us the now now coupled with cable news has made the dissemination of our news different as newspapers, magazines. radio, and local television stations struggle to survive.
Ok, top 4 local stories on WBZ today :
- Cape Cod couple spots rate HummingBird
-Rockefeller driver testifies before Grand Jury
-Work day helps Glouecester athletes to reduce fees
-Lawrence Woman slams into neighbors porch…
They must’ve budgeted every reporter and videographer for these major local news stories… oh wait, the college kids are back in town this weekend. oh boy…this will guarantee at least 3 U-haul overpass accidents on Storrow or Memorial Drives….plus, all those countless apartment infestation stories in Allston, Brighton and Mission Hill….