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Viewers of the broadcast nightly newscasts--as opposed to the videostream links offered by Tyndall Report--will have noted the advertising campaign mounted by the United States Postal Service's fakechecks.org warning against get-rich-scheme scams. The spot features a disheveled double-speaking bus passenger offering a bogus foreign lottery win in the shape of a crumpled check. So it was peculiar to see CBS' Bob Orr grant free, and uncritical, publicity to the USPS postal inspectors' fakechecks.org effort, granting what amounted to an editorial endorsement of an advertiser's claims. CBS' Kelly Cobiella provided similar coverage last month, reporting on the American Cancer Society's decision to mount a campaign on behalf of universal healthcare on the very newscast that was selling time to the ACS to run its ads.
Newscasts should go one step beyond merely keeping advertising sales and editorial story selection separate with their so-called Chinese Wall. They should proactively reassure viewers that any coverage does not constitute a journalistic kickback, rewarding advertisers for spending money on their airwaves.
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