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TYNDALL HEADLINE: HIGHLIGHTS FROM FEBRUARY 12, 2013
All three networks sent their anchors off to Washington for the State of the Union speech -- and then breaking news interrupted from California. The six-day manhunt for Christopher Dorner -- with the Los Angeles Police Department accusing one of its own former officers of triple murder -- seemed to be coming to a climax in the San Bernardino Mountains. ABC and NBC both led with correspondents in Los Angeles: Cecilia Vega and Miguel Almaguer respectively. CBS kicked off with the crackle of gunfire over a telephone line from Carter Evans, its reporter on the scene at the ski resort itself. The manhunt edged out the speech (16 min v 12) as Story of the Day.
TYNDALL PICKS FOR FEBRUARY 12, 2013: CLICK ON GRID ELEMENTS TO SEARCH FOR MATCHING ITEMS
SHOWDOWN AT BIG BEAR All three networks sent their anchors off to Washington for the State of the Union speech -- and then breaking news interrupted from California. The six-day manhunt for Christopher Dorner -- with the Los Angeles Police Department accusing one of its own former officers of triple murder -- seemed to be coming to a climax in the San Bernardino Mountains. ABC and NBC both led with correspondents in Los Angeles: Cecilia Vega and Miguel Almaguer respectively. CBS kicked off with the crackle of gunfire over a telephone line from Carter Evans, its reporter on the scene at the ski resort itself. The manhunt edged out the speech (16 min v 12) as Story of the Day.
Following up on their leads on the Dorner story, NBC went to Chuck Henry (no link), anchor of KNBC-TV, its Los Angeles affiliate, reporting from Big Bear. ABC used its Justice Department correspondent, Pierre Thomas (at the tail of the Vega videostream), in its DC bureau. CBS consulted its own John Miller, formerly a senior officer of the LAPD. NBC rounded out its coverage with anchor Brian Williams' illogical interview with William Bratton, the former Chief of Police of Los Angeles, who had his picture taken with Dorner when they were both on the force. Bratton likened the panic in southern California to the siege mentality inside-the-Beltway during the sniper murders of the fall of 2002, before contradicting himself by characterizing the current case as "historic and unprecedented."
PART OF THE UNION As for the President's State of the Union speech, all three White House correspondents filed a preview: CBS' Major Garrett concentrated on Barack Obama's plans for the economy; ABC's Jonathan Karl on the invitations extended to supporters of gun control legislation to attend, including Kaitlin Roig, the Connecticut teacher his anchor Diane Sawyer made famous; NBC's Chuck Todd ticked off all major points.
The networks' Sunday morning anchors had all been briefed. Both David Gregory of NBC's Meet the Press (no link) and George Stephanopoulos of ABC's This Week (at the tail of the Karl videostream) expected a confrontational tone from the President. Bob Schieffer of CBS' Face the Nation reflected on the attitude of Speaker John Boehner, who went on the record as calling the President gutless. In an interview with CBS anchor Scott Pelley, Majority Leader Eric Cantor declined to endorse the Speaker's insult.
ABC's John Donvan acknowledged Eliot Engel's sycophantic claim to fame.
Donvan also reminded us about Lenny Skutnik, the first State of the Union gallery guest to be saluted by name by a President. Kimberly Munley was such a guest three years ago. She was the police sergeant who helped stop the shooting spree at Fort Hood that killed 13 soldiers. Now Brian Ross files an Investigates feature on ABC about her lawsuit against the army for classifying the shooting as workplace violence rather than combat, meaning no Purple Heart casualty benefits. The lawsuit gave Ross the opportunity to bring us Exclusive videotape of the carnage itself. See a gory Major Nidal Hasan.
Absent, but still to be mentioned by name, will be Hadiya Pendleton. All three newscasts covered the murder of the 15-year-old in a Chicago park last month. Only CBS, which paid most attention to Chicago street violence all of last year, followed up with the arrest of Michael Ward and Kenneth Williams for killing her. Dean Reynolds' colleague John Miller reported at the time that strict gun laws are useless unless violators are punished; Reynolds turned Ward, aged 18, into a case in point.
TUESDAY’S TIDBITS Following up on Monday's historic shocker from Pope Benedict XVI, NBC sent Anne Thompson to the Vatican for a brief stand-up; CBS did not bother with a correspondent; ABC's David Wright demonstrated how futile it is to try to get the inside Vatican dope by consulting Paddy Power, the ecclesiastical bookmaker from Ireland. "Just a parlor game," Wright shrugged.
NBC's Janet Shamlian turned to the plight of the passengers on the stranded cruise liner Triumph, which ABC's Matt Gutman covered Monday. Hear about Ziploc latrines and onion sandwiches. What a Carnival!
The idea of Lyndon Johnson as an inspiration for St Valentine's Day seems far-fetched. His grandchildren Lyndon Nugent and Catherine Robb give it the college try on NBC.
Maestro Ahmed Sarmast could have hogged the limelight for Seth Doane's feature on his youth orchestra from Afghanistan as it heads for Carnegie Hall. Instead CBS picked out the looker 18-year-old Milad Yousufi and his Practice, Practice, Practice.
Following up on their leads on the Dorner story, NBC went to Chuck Henry (no link), anchor of KNBC-TV, its Los Angeles affiliate, reporting from Big Bear. ABC used its Justice Department correspondent, Pierre Thomas (at the tail of the Vega videostream), in its DC bureau. CBS consulted its own John Miller, formerly a senior officer of the LAPD. NBC rounded out its coverage with anchor Brian Williams' illogical interview with William Bratton, the former Chief of Police of Los Angeles, who had his picture taken with Dorner when they were both on the force. Bratton likened the panic in southern California to the siege mentality inside-the-Beltway during the sniper murders of the fall of 2002, before contradicting himself by characterizing the current case as "historic and unprecedented."
PART OF THE UNION As for the President's State of the Union speech, all three White House correspondents filed a preview: CBS' Major Garrett concentrated on Barack Obama's plans for the economy; ABC's Jonathan Karl on the invitations extended to supporters of gun control legislation to attend, including Kaitlin Roig, the Connecticut teacher his anchor Diane Sawyer made famous; NBC's Chuck Todd ticked off all major points.
The networks' Sunday morning anchors had all been briefed. Both David Gregory of NBC's Meet the Press (no link) and George Stephanopoulos of ABC's This Week (at the tail of the Karl videostream) expected a confrontational tone from the President. Bob Schieffer of CBS' Face the Nation reflected on the attitude of Speaker John Boehner, who went on the record as calling the President gutless. In an interview with CBS anchor Scott Pelley, Majority Leader Eric Cantor declined to endorse the Speaker's insult.
ABC's John Donvan acknowledged Eliot Engel's sycophantic claim to fame.
Donvan also reminded us about Lenny Skutnik, the first State of the Union gallery guest to be saluted by name by a President. Kimberly Munley was such a guest three years ago. She was the police sergeant who helped stop the shooting spree at Fort Hood that killed 13 soldiers. Now Brian Ross files an Investigates feature on ABC about her lawsuit against the army for classifying the shooting as workplace violence rather than combat, meaning no Purple Heart casualty benefits. The lawsuit gave Ross the opportunity to bring us Exclusive videotape of the carnage itself. See a gory Major Nidal Hasan.
Absent, but still to be mentioned by name, will be Hadiya Pendleton. All three newscasts covered the murder of the 15-year-old in a Chicago park last month. Only CBS, which paid most attention to Chicago street violence all of last year, followed up with the arrest of Michael Ward and Kenneth Williams for killing her. Dean Reynolds' colleague John Miller reported at the time that strict gun laws are useless unless violators are punished; Reynolds turned Ward, aged 18, into a case in point.
TUESDAY’S TIDBITS Following up on Monday's historic shocker from Pope Benedict XVI, NBC sent Anne Thompson to the Vatican for a brief stand-up; CBS did not bother with a correspondent; ABC's David Wright demonstrated how futile it is to try to get the inside Vatican dope by consulting Paddy Power, the ecclesiastical bookmaker from Ireland. "Just a parlor game," Wright shrugged.
NBC's Janet Shamlian turned to the plight of the passengers on the stranded cruise liner Triumph, which ABC's Matt Gutman covered Monday. Hear about Ziploc latrines and onion sandwiches. What a Carnival!
The idea of Lyndon Johnson as an inspiration for St Valentine's Day seems far-fetched. His grandchildren Lyndon Nugent and Catherine Robb give it the college try on NBC.
Maestro Ahmed Sarmast could have hogged the limelight for Seth Doane's feature on his youth orchestra from Afghanistan as it heads for Carnegie Hall. Instead CBS picked out the looker 18-year-old Milad Yousufi and his Practice, Practice, Practice.
