It seems that for every step we take in pandemic awareness, we take a step back. The media is uncertain how to present this issue, afraid on one hand to dismiss what could be the biggest story of the century, while reticent to invest themselves into another Y2K/SARS dud.
The news business (and it is a business) is funded by advertising. Cars, big screen TV’s, Airlines, etc. To shout too loudly that instead of buying that new automobile or taking that vacation, you should be buying sacks of rice and beans, is to bite the hand that feeds them. There are safer stories to cover: the bashing of political parties, celebrity scandals, or the insanity in the mid-east. None of these affect advertising revenue.
And, unlike the stories usually presented, reporting on the prospect of a pandemic requires some thought, and intelligence. Were talking about subjects like antigen shift, RNA replication, and the prospect of adverse affects from the, as yet unavailable, vaccine. Not exactly the sort of subjects that the Twinkies behind the news desk are likely to be conversant with.
Occasionally, a bit of light escapes from our broadcasters, as in the case of a recent broadcast of Meet The Press with Tim Russert. Guests in a round table discussion included Tom Brokaw and Ted Koppel. While discussing the difficulties in covering the Avian Flu threat, Tom Brokaw admitted that he and his wife were stockpiling supplies and were prepared to hunker down in their country home in the event of a pandemic. Ted Koppel admitted that he had not begun to prepared, but was going to start immediately.
Both apparently take this threat seriously.
Meanwhile, the WHO (World Health Organization) has unveiled their `bunker' (their term, not mine) in Geneva, where they plan to uplink live satellite feeds to TV stations worldwide in many languages, updating the spread of the pandemic. Sort of an Influenza Channel, with maps, graphics, authoritative on-air personalities, and timely flu advisories.
I can see it now . . .
Today in Chicago there is a 40% chance of scattered Fluies, rising to 60% by early evening. Best take along your masks and gloves today. The wait time to be seen at local emergency rooms is expected to climb to 18 hours later today, and no rooms or ventilators are available. Moving on to Cincinatti . . .Yet despite all of this, and dire warnings from the United Nations, the WHO, and even our own President, few are paying attention. The news media glosses over the threat, and people assume it is overblown.
When Oprah Winfrey gave away a couple of hundred cars last year to her studio audience, it was widely covered by the national and local news outlets. Last week, she devoted a show to Avian Flu, and the need to prepare, and there was scarcely a word on the mainstream media about it.
One has to wonder what will it take to get the attention of the media?
And if and when that does happen, will it be too late?
