Is It My Imagination Or Has The Tone Of The Reporting On The Nuclear Disaster In Japan...........

[global1]

changed between last night and this morning. Last night all news reporting was focused on the crisis unfolding at the nuclear facility that was damaged by the earthquake and tsunami. From the tone of all the reporters and nuclear energy experts the situation was dire and on the verge of worldwide calamity. Talk of evacuating Japan. The jetstream bringing radiation to the U.S. Potassium Iodide tablets. Complete meltdowns. Worse than Chernobyl. Radiation levels. etc, etc, etc.

I went to bed last night freaked out beyond words and had a hard time falling asleep. Visions of the movie "On The Beach" playing in my head.

Then this a.m. when I woke up and turned on CNN - they weren't even talking about this crisis. They were back on the MidEast - Libya and Bahrain. Gas prices. And politics as usual in D.C.

When they did talk about Japan - they seemed to be playing down the crisis at the nuclear facility there as well as playing down the effects of this disaster - both in Japan and elsewhere.

What happened between last night and this morning that changed the tone of the story about this problem?

[Hell Hath No Fury]

1. I noticed that too ---

I don't know what to make of it.

[LaurenG]

2. My take: They need to get the reporters out of there and keep the population

calm. I feel certain that things haven't improved but they are better off staying off the subject until some decision has been made about what to do about it.

edit: typo

[Atman]

7. I agree. It is about crowd control and averting a panic at this point.

Some brave men and women are working in a deadly environment doing everything they can to stop this -- which is nothing. In the meantime, the officials, like the Amityville Mayor in Jaws, don't want to alarm anyone. Just keep telling them everything is fine, otherwise there will be a panic. That is their biggest concern now, because they know they can't do shit about the unfolding disaster.

[woodsprite]

3. Probably the NRC and those Repubs that want another 200 nuke

plants in the US is what got to them.

I swear I'm coming soooooo close to slapping some sense into some of my friends.

[Atman]

4. GE is using it's televisions stations to spin happy talk

GE is one of the largest builders of N-plants, and the built the one that is currently melting down in Japan. This morning on Morning Joe they had a shill on telling us, once again, that everything is fine. Sure, we've had some explosions and stuff, but c'mon, it's not what most people fear...it's going to blow up like a nuclear bomb or anything. Silly people. Stop worrying, and lets get to work building the next generation of newer, safer plants. Of course, nothing could wrong. Really.

[Junkdrawer]

5. When the news gets too grim, it's spiked. Remember Iraq? n/t

[ReturnoftheDjedi]

6. if last night's tenor had continued it would have created mass panic on the West Co

[solara]

8. I noticed the very same thing. It is absolutely spooky

Last night, Jim Walsh was almost freaking at the idea that they might evacuate the last fifty workers. His voice was shaking as he said it would be "bad, very very bad" if that happened. Soon after the news came that that had, in fact, done just that and he was no where to be seen while Anderson Cooper was stunned into a moment or two of silence..it was freaking -me- out so I switched off, I couldn't take the raw fear that was just emanating from them. This morning Walsh is like a different person and the reporting is much more laid back. I don't care for pablum. This is all getting very very spooky.

[siligut]

9. My perception is that while the news is broadening their spectrum . . .

The nuclear situation in Japan is actually worse. Watching MSNBC and CNBC.

[Armstead]

10. Big stuff also happened in Bahrain -- What sounds like a masascre

What sounds like a massacre by their government with the help of Saudi Arabia...Not a small matter.

Hopefully the news media is able to walk and chew gum at the same time, in terms of covering the news when ,more than one crisis is happening

[Brickbat]

11. Part of it is, I think, that before we go to bed here is the middle of their work day there, and so

there is a lot more coverage. When we get up in the morning here, they have been through a day already and are working on thinking about tomorrow. I honestly think that the time difference is a big part of this. I've noticed it over the past few days, too.

[PA Democrat]

19. I've been thinking the same thing. Japan is 13 hours ahead

of eastern US (EST).

[Brickbat]

21. I think it was four nights ago where I went to bed really taken aback at how serious the situation

sounded, and then when I got up and looked online it seemed as if very little had happened. If I go to bed at 10 p.m. and they're ramping up their midmorning press conferences and reassessments, and the media there is covering the heck out of it, it's going to seem dire. And then when I'm on the computer at lunch time and it's after midnight there, coverage slows down. I think that's the main reason, not some message control.

[Scuba]

12. Marketing problem... hard to sell your fake news when consumers already...

...have all they want of it.

[Ozymanithrax]

13. MSNBC, CNN, and FOX all continued reporting on Japan this morning.

They are having segments on other stories, but Japan is still the top story from my hotel room in Las Vegas.

But I havn't seen any stories saying they would need to evacuate Japan.

[JBoy]

14. I think there's some story fatigue setting in.

The situation is still bad, probably getting worse, but nothing particularly "new" in the last 24 hours. Same thing happened with the BP disaster.

They'll be back on it when there's something more tangible to report.

[ljm2002]

15. You are not wrong...

...I woke up this morning and checked my usual sites for news of the disaster, and there was nothing new.

However: the Emperor of Japan was reported telling his people not to give up, and here on DU someone posted a blurb that someone high up in the EU (President? not sure) has said that a catastrophic event is expected at the Fukushima plant within hours.

I am on tenterhooks and still hoping and praying for a miracle. At this point a miracle == no China Syndrome.

[asjr]

16. They were probably checking up

on Charlie Sheen.

[felix_numinous]

17. It is a part of shock and awe

to allow the public to be exposed to tragedy, but to suppress the follow up, the context of how people are rebuilding, surviving, healing. And especially --who may be responsible.

Reporting of destruction far outweighs the reporting of construction, of rebuilding--or more likely--the lack of it. The bombing of Iraq, Hurricane Katrina, Gulf oil disasters all involve abuses of power that have cost countless lives--we are allowed to hear of the death and disaster, but then that is it.

Who is responsible, who is going take action to fix these disasters--the international corporations--will stop the flow of information and stop the discourse before anyone starts pointing fingers at them.

[Whisp]

18. yes, noticed! did you see the 3 CNN women discussing effects of radiation?

downplaying it's effects. Some were chatting and giggling in the background. wtf.

it's was bizarre.

[tavalon]

20. Considering the couple of new revelations today, I think they have gone into

domestic control mode. I don't blame them. They aren't going to tell us the truth because they would have to tell the Japanese the truth and as resilient and amazing as those fine folks are, everyone has a breaking point.

[AngryOldDem]

22. I've been up late the past few nights with a cold...

...and I've noticed it too. My only idea is that by that point (usually when AC 360 goes off at midnight) they've said all they can say for the day about Japan and they turn their attention to other events that are important. Other stuff is going on too, and quite frankly, I'm beginning to find the coverage of Japan redundant and confusing, especially with the nuke situation. To me they are beginning to talk in circles mainly because nobody's quite sure what's going on.

I don't think they're necessarily playing things down, but trying to divide their time with other things that are going on around the world. During the day, CNN has been about 90% Japan.