It's pathetic that her producers don't vet incoming information better; that's obvious.
It's even sadder, though, that somebody would be motivated to place such a call in the first place. I have a pretty good sense of humor, but this kind of thing in my opinion isn't terribly funny, and just shows the utter lack of civility in public discourse today.
Re: Big Breakthrough in Downed Malaysian Airliner
Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2014 12:46 am
by Joe Guy
I think it's funny. I feel sorry for the girl because she was caught off guard but these types of calls have been made to the media for a long time and everyone who broadcasts live discussions in the news business needs to always be on alert.
The first I ever witnessed was when someone called to talk to Peter Jennings during the OJ slow speed highway chase. Since then they seem to happen quite often.
Here's more examples...
and the Peter Jennings call....
Re: Big Breakthrough in Downed Malaysian Airliner
Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2014 2:42 am
by Lord Jim
There were a couple of things going on here...
First of all, Krystal Ball isn't an idiot, but she's also not an experienced anchor person dealing with a major fast breaking news story...
She's a pundit who appears on MSNBC's show The Cycle (Which is MSNBC's left-leaning Gen-X hosted version of FOX News' The Five...as shows go on MSNBC, it's not that bad... it was a lot better when they had SE Cupp...but I digress...) And she occasionally guest hosts on the shows of other MSNBC liberal pundits...
But Anderson Cooper she ain't...
She has no experience as a serious journalist, or as a reporter, much less as an anchor dealing with this kind of fast breaking news, with reports coming in from multiple sources...
So it was probably unfair to put her in this position in the first place...
On top of that, they probably didn't have the "A team" production squad in place for this kind of a breaking news story, (even by MSNBC standards) and more importantly, you had the dynamic of the "get it on the air first, so we can be first, check the facts later" that invariably cranks in with contemporary cable news channels during fast breaking stories...
This embarrassment is the logical result of that combination of things...
The good news is that no harm was done, because no one tunes in to MSNBC for information when a story like this is breaking anyway...(they turn on CNN)
I'm sure it will make the MSNBC Christmas Party Gag Reel, (and I'll bet Krystal probably thinks it's pretty funny too...)
Re: Big Breakthrough in Downed Malaysian Airliner
Posted: Tue Jul 22, 2014 6:14 pm
by BoSoxGal
Okay, maybe I was in sourpuss mode yesterday - I still think it's not a very nice thing to do, but I will admit that saying the plane was taken down by a blast of wind from Howard Stern's ass was pretty clever . . . I mean, if he had to do it, at least the content was funny. The 'dumbass' comment afterward was entirely unnecessary, however.
What can I say, I live by the code of manners instilled in me by my dear departed Granny, which is why I walk through this life in a constant state of disappointment with many, many of my fellow humans.