Nothing like a transit shutdown to bring about the best and worst of local TV News and Radio. At least, for once, the endless traffic reports, (which is the tapestry of morning-news TV), were longed for and legitimate.
The BART strike of 2013 is a big story, no doubt, but it has brought forth all the icky elements of why many people have a distaste for the media.
For one, the noticeable rush of adrenaline seen on the Bay Area TV screens was not from the commuter but instead on way-too-giddy local reporters doing live shots with the glee of a kid inside a toy store about to go on a free shopping spree.
As usual, the Bay Bridge Toll Plaza was a popular destination for reporters. The overhead shots from the helicopters made for compelling TV and for once, actually showed the vehicular mayhem, the Bay Area's version of carmageddon. Too bad one reporter, instead of asking the usual ridiculous "is it rough driving?", could not think on their own and better ask, "did you not think about alternative ways to get into the city?" I know, grumpy me, dare thinking beyond the usual standard-fare morning TV news minutiae.
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