Thursday, April 18, 2013

Media outlets can’t get their stories straight

Boston marathon: Here is what we know thus far: - Howie carr/Boston Herald

Here is what we know thus far:
The cops have photos of one of the suspects, or two.

The suspect(s) may be either “dark-skinned” (CNN) or “white” (CBS).


They were carrying backpacks, or maybe bags.

The backpacks, or bags, were black, unless they were blue.

The bombs were detonated by control boards, unless it was cellphones, unless it was egg timers.

Yesterday’s press conference was supposed to take place at 5, until it was supposed to take place at 8, until it was canceled.
The media descended on the federal courthouse on Northern Avenue because the suspect was in custody — no, actually it was because a bomb threat had been phoned in.

Yesterday was not a day in which the local and national media covered themselves with glory. It reminded me of my days as a college-boy rewrite man in the Hearst empire, taking dictation from the old-time Hearst legmen. Often they were wrong, never were they in doubt.

I don’t particularly want to point fingers here, if only because I got the same bad information. My source said he was getting it from “the White House.”