Local Television and Fake News

If you don't like the news change the channel. But what if you can't tell what is really news and what isn't? What if corporations sent your local news stations a video press release of their product and they ran it as a news piece (and they get paid extra to do so)? Wouldn't you be more inclined to consider purchasing the product because it was being presented as objective news coverage rather than as a paid advertisement?

"Over a ten-month period, the Center for Media and Democracy documented television newsrooms' use of 36 video news releases (VNRs)—a small sample of the thousands produced each year. They identified 77 television stations, from those in the largest to the smallest markets, that aired these VNRs or related satellite media tours (SMTs) in 98 separate instances, without disclosure to viewers.

Collectively, these 77 stations reach more than half of the U.S. population. The VNRs and SMTs whose broadcast CMD documented were produced by three broadcast PR firms for 49 different clients, including General Motors, Intel, Pfizer and Capital One. In each case, these 77 television stations actively disguised the sponsored content to make it appear to be their own reporting. In almost all cases, stations failed to balance the clients' messages with independently-gathered footage or basic journalistic research. More than one-third of the time, stations aired the pre-packaged VNR in its entirety".

Let your local news station and the FCC know how you feel. Just the facts ma'am!