The Associated Press has reported that the Larimer County, Colorado sheriff’s office has already ascertained that the Heene family did not stage a hoax when the Balloon boy’s parents reported that their 6-year-old son was feared to have been in ‘a helium balloon that floated away from their home and traveled more than 50 miles.’ Knowing news media, even this point in the story will get exploited for its full controversial content.
Media, being one of the manifestations of a commercialized society, always have a desperation to fill airtime with seemingly controversial and/or sensational stories so as to keep viewers glued to the channel, which is all the better for the channel’s sponsors and/or popularity. For media owners, a running update of a particular story is construed as a busy schedule and a dynamic media channel. For viewers fed with the running update, on the other hand, a continuing story is construed as an important piece of news.
In this particular case, ‘cable news media responded to the story of Falcon Heene, a 6-year-old boy who was allegedly trapped in a homemade weather balloon as it raced across the Colorado sky, the way they respond to any potential tragedy that conveniently is accompanied by great footage’ where the story was covered non-stop.
As one American observed, the story fed and continues to feed ‘into the worst voyeuristic instincts of our culture.’
Nothing major really happened in that story. It turned out the boy was not in the balloon. One wonders, however, how public viewing, and consequently how media treatment, would have been if, indeed, the boy was in the balloon that floated miles away in the sky.
Via nj.com
