Has the news really changed in the last 40 years.

[Big-D]

My 40 year class reunion is coming up this weekend. Someone in our class was talking about the weather forecast for then. They said, "Scare team 8 just said the rain will move out by 4-5 pm Saturday." Another classmate responded with, "Gotta get those ad dollars somehow. Remember when the news was just, well, the news?" That offended me.

As someone who has been in and out of broadcasting for over 37 years, I don't see where or when the news changed at all. The 24 hour cable news channels screwed everything up with not clearly separating opinion from news (I mostly blame Fox for starting the trend and CNN and MS Now just followed along). When it comes to local news, the actual on air product looks essentially the same as it did the first time I walked through the doors at 120 College SE in Grand Rapids as an intern. The technology has changed over the years and the graphics are more flashy. But the actual substance of the news hasn't changed.

Am I wrong in this thinking or is my classmate full of shit?

[moldyoldie]

My 40 year class reunion is coming up this weekend. Someone in our class was talking about the weather forecast for then. They said, "Scare team 8 just said the rain will move out by 4-5 pm Saturday." Another classmate responded with, "Gotta get those ad dollars somehow. Remember when the news was just, well, the news?" That offended me.

As someone who has been in and out of broadcasting for over 37 years, I don't see where or when the news changed at all. The 24 hour cable news channels screwed everything up with not clearly separating opinion from news (I mostly blame Fox for starting the trend and CNN and MS Now just followed along). When it comes to local news, the actual on air product looks essentially the same as it did the first time I walked through the doors at 120 College SE in Grand Rapids as an intern. The technology has changed over the years and the graphics are more flashy. But the actual substance of the news hasn't changed.

Am I wrong in this thinking or is my classmate full of shit?

I don't think you're wrong. If anything, the move toward extended newscasts has subjugated so-called "hard news" to more feature oriented stuff ostensibly to appeal to women viewers. However, "if it bleeds, it leads" still holds sway for the most part.
As is true for most all visual media, the graphics and editing have become flashier and more "visually intrusive", but you were addressing substance, not style.

[MegaHertz]

CNN was the beginning of the end. Once there were 24 hour networks and the opinion shows started bleeding into news, it was all over but the shouting. Now you have networks that will pound the idea that the sky is purple.