Helicopters Used for News Coverage

WGN - TV Chicago SkyCam 9 "resting" in the hanger next to WLS's Chopper 7HD.


The Chopper wars heat up
WGN PROMO
https://www.facebook.com/WGNMorningNews/videos/vb.121449307867611/1049581325054400/?type=2&theater

Choppers for all the Seattle, WA tv stations are in the air covering a serious mass casualty incident on a bridge.

KING 5 - NBC
http://www.king5.com/story/news/local/2015/05/21/king-live-video/27727723/
KOMO 4 - ABC
http://www.komonews.com/live
KIRO 7 - CBS
http://www.kirotv.com/videos/news/kiro-live-event-1/vt6Gk/

Great, I'm been in the US for five days now, I've seen NOTHING regarding the Syria crisis, the EU migrants crisis, or indeed anything 'international', (the Pope's visit doesn't count I'm afraid)

The broadcast media here is even more myopic than I'd feared. It's a disgrace to proper journalism.

Still, lovely glossy sets, over made up presenters, multi-layered graphics, augmented reality but fcuk all actual news.

Chopper 5 in Chicago captured this chase live yesterday. Very unusual for the midwest. Fairly typical for California.
http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/High-Speed-Car-Chase-Underway-in-Chicago--330007791.html

This is why there's such a desire in the US for international channels. AJA, BBC World News and RT America spring to mind.

KABC 7 Los Angeles is exacvuated due to a bomb threat. They are broadcasting live from their front lawn and Chopper 7. They can still take live pictures from inside their newsroom.
Breaking Coverage. http://abc7.com/live/ But its probably a hoax. (lets hope)




Apparently they are able to use their sattelite truck to run the newscasts from the carpark

Looks like it was a hoax and they're heading back into the building. Still broadcasting from the lawn until the top of the hour.

I suppose so. Extraordinary for a country that prides itself on being a democracy, to have its broadcast media more akin to that in a dictatorship.

The relative paucity of foreign news on US television is certainly a problem, but just to be fair, the US networks did report on the refugee crisis before the current lull in the story. ABC, for instance, sent its main anchor to Hungary: http://www.thewrap.com/david-muir-reports-from-front-lines-of-syrian-refugee-crisis-video/

Also, Newshour on PBS tends to have more international news and analysis than the commercial networks.

Theres always a few minutes of international coverage on CBS & NBC's evening news. The popes visit to the states was a big deal and naturally dominated the headlines. We're a big country and the evening newscasts are only limited to 22 minutes so naturally most of the time will be dedicated to national news (plus a less depressing feel good story). International stories basically have to have an effect on the US or there is a major crisis going on to get air time.

BBC News at Ten is about 25 mins, ITV about the same. The airtime is filled with whatever is important, sometimes it is close to 100% international, other times 100% national, there's no policy to fill a certain quota
with exclusively national news, or 'feel good fluff',



Yes, in other words, hopeless

Right... well anyway.
I think it was pretty remarkable that KABC was able to broadcast from their carpark yesterday on the fly and even pull down the signal from their chopper during the evac of the station. They did only have 2 mics and limited graphics capability. A bit too much backslapping though during the broadcast i think.