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No Time To Think: The Menace of Media Speed and the 24-hour News Cycle
An eviscerating look at the state of journalism in the age of the 24 hour news cycle by a Pulitzer Prize-winning television critic and a veteran news correspondent.
No Time To Think focuses on the insidious and increasing portion of the news media that, due to the dangerously extreme speed at which it is produced, is only half thought out, half true, and lazily repeated from anonymous sources interested in selling opinion and wild speculation as news. These news item can easily gain exposure today, assuming a life of their own while making a mockery of journalism and creating casualties of cool deliberation and thoughtful discourse. Much of it is picked up gratuitously and given resonance online or through CNN, Fox News, MSNBC and other networks, which must, in this age of the 24-hour news cycle, "feed the beast."
In dissecting this frantic news blur, No Time to Think breaks down a number of speed-driven blunders from the insider perspective of Charles Feldman, who spent 20 years as a CNN correspondent, as well as the outsider perspective of Howard Rosenberg, who covered the coverage for 25 years as TV critic for The Los Angeles Times.
No Time to Think demonstrates how today's media blitz scrambles the public's perspective in ways that potentially shape how we think, act and react as a global society. The end result effects not only the media and the public, but also the government leaders we trust to make carefully considered decisions on our behalf. Featuring interviews ranging from former NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw to internet doyenne Arianna Huffington to PBS stalwart Jim Lehrer to CNN chief Jonathan Klein to a host of former presidential press secretaries and other keen-eyed media watchers, this incisive work measures lasting fallout from the 24-hour news cycle beginning in 1980 with the arrival of CNN, right up to the present.
No Time To Think focuses on the insidious and increasing portion of the news media that, due to the dangerously extreme speed at which it is produced, is only half thought out, half true, and lazily repeated from anonymous sources interested in selling opinion and wild speculation as news. These news item can easily gain exposure today, assuming a life of their own while making a mockery of journalism and creating casualties of cool deliberation and thoughtful discourse. Much of it is picked up gratuitously and given resonance online or through CNN, Fox News, MSNBC and other networks, which must, in this age of the 24-hour news cycle, "feed the beast."
In dissecting this frantic news blur, No Time to Think breaks down a number of speed-driven blunders from the insider perspective of Charles Feldman, who spent 20 years as a CNN correspondent, as well as the outsider perspective of Howard Rosenberg, who covered the coverage for 25 years as TV critic for The Los Angeles Times.
No Time to Think demonstrates how today's media blitz scrambles the public's perspective in ways that potentially shape how we think, act and react as a global society. The end result effects not only the media and the public, but also the government leaders we trust to make carefully considered decisions on our behalf. Featuring interviews ranging from former NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw to internet doyenne Arianna Huffington to PBS stalwart Jim Lehrer to CNN chief Jonathan Klein to a host of former presidential press secretaries and other keen-eyed media watchers, this incisive work measures lasting fallout from the 24-hour news cycle beginning in 1980 with the arrival of CNN, right up to the present.
240 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 2008
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97 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 11, 2022
Well, we all know how our digital, hectic era of constant buzz and 24/7 news 'rat race' doesn't help in depth analysis or 'time to think' when it comes to most information. If journalists have always been prone to make mistakes, at least, in the past, there was time for serious editing. This time is long gone, with staffing having been dramatically reduced, but deadlines and the rush to get stories out 'now now now' on the internet, has, on the contrary, increased. The demand for constant information, when information is rarely constant, also makes for a lot of air time filled with, well, not news (although it passes off as such) but an overload of 'reporting on the reports' (especially on TV) not helping any understanding. But so what?
This book is very insightful because, first of all, it has been written by two journalists themselves (one is a Pulitzer Prize winner). What they do, then, is to expose how it works from the inside. They retell the story behind the advent of 24/7 news. They show, above all, the drastic differences between reporting events after they have happened, as opposed to 'reporting' as they are happening. They demonstrate, then, how the last one (that defines how we consume news these days) is very dangerous for truth, accuracy, critical thinking, and, so, makes for the bad regurgitation of rumours, half-baked analysis, poor fact-checking (if at all!), and the spread of misinformation. Speed isn't a virtue indeed, and theirs being focused mostly on the USA, they offer plenty of examples ranging from media reporting on politics (e.g. presidential campaigns...) to highly mediatised court cases (e.g. O.J. Simpsons...).
The key thing here, though, is that it's *not* an attack on journalists or the journalistic profession. They, for instance, don't believe that 'citizen bloggers' will solve the issue -on the contrary! It's merely a reckoning that speed is with us and here to stay, and, so, is a reflection, too, on how we can cope with it. For professionals, it's about the need of implementing tougher standards when it comes to their reporting in their digital outlets. For the rest of us, it's about the need for better mediatic literacy.
All in all, then, it's a very good read to get a better understanding of how 'churnalists' are under constant pressure, and why it matter to the rest of us. Speed, after all, is not an issue pertaining only to American medias...
This book is very insightful because, first of all, it has been written by two journalists themselves (one is a Pulitzer Prize winner). What they do, then, is to expose how it works from the inside. They retell the story behind the advent of 24/7 news. They show, above all, the drastic differences between reporting events after they have happened, as opposed to 'reporting' as they are happening. They demonstrate, then, how the last one (that defines how we consume news these days) is very dangerous for truth, accuracy, critical thinking, and, so, makes for the bad regurgitation of rumours, half-baked analysis, poor fact-checking (if at all!), and the spread of misinformation. Speed isn't a virtue indeed, and theirs being focused mostly on the USA, they offer plenty of examples ranging from media reporting on politics (e.g. presidential campaigns...) to highly mediatised court cases (e.g. O.J. Simpsons...).
The key thing here, though, is that it's *not* an attack on journalists or the journalistic profession. They, for instance, don't believe that 'citizen bloggers' will solve the issue -on the contrary! It's merely a reckoning that speed is with us and here to stay, and, so, is a reflection, too, on how we can cope with it. For professionals, it's about the need of implementing tougher standards when it comes to their reporting in their digital outlets. For the rest of us, it's about the need for better mediatic literacy.
All in all, then, it's a very good read to get a better understanding of how 'churnalists' are under constant pressure, and why it matter to the rest of us. Speed, after all, is not an issue pertaining only to American medias...
Want to read
November 9, 2008Isn't that the truth?! When we try to 'keep up' with current events we really don't have time to think . . . or eat . . . or live . . . or pray! Dangerous! I think the evil one likes that!
February 14, 2010
Interesting, if subjective read on how we got to the current state of news dissemination. Asks tough questions about media ethics, and the fine line between getting it first and getting it right.
January 3, 2017
Fascinating analysis of the state of news reporting in the run up to the 2008 US Presidential election. It traces the technological changes that have affected the industry with the advent of 24 hour television "news" and the impact of the internet and its burgeoning wave of bloggers and alternative "news" media. The need for continuous novelty and content means that speed of response takes priority over accuracy. "Report immediately, correct later" increasingly seems to be the dominant philosophy within news media organisations.
The authors also touch on how stories are routinely presented as having two equal and opposing interpretations purely for entertainment purposes. The binary conflict of news commentators and analysts engaging in tit-for-tat point scoring is designed to keep people watching or clicking to the next advert.
Despite being nearly 10 years old, this book is still essential reading for those who want to take a step back from the shrill clamouring of "news" whether in newspapers, television, radio or social media and understand a little more about why it looks the way it does and perhaps try to navigate it more critically.
The authors also touch on how stories are routinely presented as having two equal and opposing interpretations purely for entertainment purposes. The binary conflict of news commentators and analysts engaging in tit-for-tat point scoring is designed to keep people watching or clicking to the next advert.
Despite being nearly 10 years old, this book is still essential reading for those who want to take a step back from the shrill clamouring of "news" whether in newspapers, television, radio or social media and understand a little more about why it looks the way it does and perhaps try to navigate it more critically.
January 10, 2023
No Time to Think is about the craze of the 24-hour news cycle and its effect on consumers. Rosenberg describes the behind-the-scenes of the news industry, and the pressures on news workers to produce stories. Rosenberg and Feldman do a great job of understanding both sides of the argument in every chapter. I liked how the novel was written, with every chapter about a new aspect of the news industry. Each chapter would dive deep into the argument of that aspect of news. Not only did the authors inform their readers about the news cycle, but they also indirectly argued their point. While still giving the reader time to form their own opinion. However, I did not enjoy the amount of backlash the citizen journalists received. Rosenberg explains why TV news stations became a big hit, addressing how many Americans used to live at home all day. He also describes the whole rise of news, starting from the idea of movie theatres playing news clips. Overall the book was a good read, very informative and brought up many points of discussion.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews