Texas School Shooting --Local Coverage; Average to Good; KNBR and "The Game" Whiffs on Steve Kerr Video

LOCAL COVERAGE...as usual, spotty to average at best.

With some decent work in between.

The Texas school shooting, disturbing and unsettlinmg, was difficult to cover too. The initial reports were bad enough: a gunman had entered a middle school and began shooting.

But in the world we live in, tragically, nothing out of the ordinary other than another alert. Only later on did we learn the casualty number would be so high. Only a week or so after the Buffalo shooting, could it be happening again.

I tuned to KQED and KGO Radio. Eventually switched over to CNN and flipped over the various cable channels --the usual early images and local video was nothing out of the usual story line.

A shooter entered the school and began firing at will. A lockdown in place occured. We still didn't know much information but then things changed drmatically when casualty figures were announced. Then social media went beserk with Twitter saying there were mass victims and the death toll, mainly little kids, was over ten and that several more victims were in the hospital.

On KGO, Pat Thurston and news anchor, Kim McCallister, shocked at the carnage, began sobbing and crying. At first, I thought it was a little over the top but then I sudenly realized both Thurston and McCallister are mothers with young kids. It hit them hard. So it made sense.

KGO offered their own updates but when the story got bigger and the death count was larger, KGO switched to the ABC News radio coverage and reporter/anchor, Alex Stone.

KCBS also relied on its CBS News radio network coverage. I wasn't thrilled the traffic/weather updtes were still being updated but I'm also hip to the fact this story, tragic as it was, was outside the Bay Area and that influenced both the length and placement of sub stories in particular.

On TV here, most of the outlets stuck with network accounts, KRON was the first to get interviews on the street and also scored a reaction from Congressman Eric Swalwell.

KTVU, KGO, KPIX and NBC Bay Area led their 5 and 6PM newscasts with the Texas school shooting. (Obviously)

There were no local reports that were out of the ordinary but that's to be expected. The usual MOS interviews were employed and that's basic standard fare for these types of stories, serious and depressing as they are.

I wish the local stations--TV and radio--had a better game plan. I know covering all this is difficult and requires extra chops but given their frequency, (lately) you would think that would be something that was planned and ready to broadcast.

I'm not just talking about reaction from politicians and MOS interviews. What about analysis from experts on crisis? Therapists and mental health doctors. Crime experts in studio. It should be a requirement.

The Warriors Steve Kerr pre-game presser was powerful, provocative and demonstrably vivid. Kerr's anger was real and genuine. Theidea of playing a basketball game was ridiculous and Kerr brought that out.

The sports stations in town--KNBR and 95.7 FM, "The Game" could have discussed all this after and even this morning. But the local toy dept. gave scant attention to it and barely acknowledged it. They have no depth. They both live in a fish bowl. They will try to improvise today but they will most likely fail miserably.

And yes, I heard Tom Tolbert talk about it all but I wasn't satisfied. Call me cynical. The "emotional" crying was not sincere in my book.