About the Book
An eviscerating look at the state of journalism in the age of the 24 hour news cycle by a Pulitzer Prize-winning television critic and a veteran news correspondent.
No Time To Think focuses on the insidious and increasing portion of the news media that, due to the dangerously extreme speed at which it is produced, is only half thought out, half true, and lazily repeated from anonymous sources interested in selling opinion and wild speculation as news. These news item can easily gain exposure today, assuming a life of their own while making a mockery of journalism and creating casualties of cool deliberation and thoughtful discourse. Much of it is picked up gratuitously and given resonance online or through CNN, Fox News, MSNBC and other networks, which must, in this age of the 24-hour news cycle, "feed the beast."
In dissecting this frantic news blur, No Time to Think breaks down a number of speed-driven blunders from the insider perspective of Charles Feldman, who spent 20 years as a CNN correspondent, as well as the outsider perspective of Howard Rosenberg, who covered the coverage for 25 years as TV critic for The Los Angeles Times.
No Time to Think demonstrates how today's media blitz scrambles the public's perspective in ways that potentially shape how we think, act and react as a global society. The end result effects not only the media and the public, but also the government leaders we trust to make carefully considered decisions on our behalf. Featuring interviews ranging from former NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw to internet doyenne Arianna Huffington to PBS stalwart Jim Lehrer to CNN chief Jonathan Klein to a host of former presidential press secretaries and other keen-eyed media watchers, this incisive work measures lasting fallout from the 24-hour news cycle beginning in 1980 with the arrival of CNN, right up to the present.
Table of Contents:
Prologue
1. Why Is Speed So Bad?
2. Two Revolutions: French and Mexican
3. All the News Before It Happens
4. Blog On!
5. A New Protestant Reformation: Citizen Journalists to the Rescue
6. In-depth Instant Results
7. Desperate Newspapers Play Catch-up
8. Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside: A Conversation
9. What If? Scenarios, Dark and Darker
10. 5 Grams News, 10 Grams Speculation
About the Author :
Howard Rosenberg earned a Pulitzer Prize and numerous other honors during his 25 years as TV critic for the Los Angeles Times. His anthology, "Not So Prime Time: Chasing the Trivial on American Television," was published in 2004, winning wide praise and a starred review from Publishers Weekly. He teaches critical writing and news ethics at the University of Southern California, USA. Charles S. Feldman's nearly 20 years as an investigative television and print journalist have straddled the crucial juncture of "old-fashioned" reporting and the introduction of the 24 hour news cycle and lend him an unique perspective to the advantages and pitfalls that this change has brought about.
In the course of his career, Feldman's experience has ranged across all media platforms: television, radio, newspapers, magazines and online. He worked as an on air correspondent for CNN in New York and Los Angeles reporting on terrorism and organized crime, among other things. He is currently a regular contributor to the CBS all-news radio station in Los Angeles as well as the CBS Radio Network.
Feldman has written and/or reported for publications such as, New York Magazine, Parade, The New York Post, The New York Daily News; Playboy (International Edition); Philadelphia Magazine and The Catholic Digest, among others. He was also a regular contributor to the Reuters News Service.
Feldman holds a bachelor's degree in political science from Brooklyn College of the City University of New York and a master's degree in journalism from New York University. Born in Brooklyn, he has lived most of his adult life in New York City. He now lives in Los Angeles, where he previously taught at the University of Southern California School of Journalism, and currently serves as a freelance journalist and media consultant.
Review :
"This is a dangerous book because it's all true. Every one of us inside the media (and outside it, if there are any left) ought to read every word, and then question all we see, hear and say. And think. Every day, twenty-four hours a day. The book will explain why. Beautifully." - Linda Ellerbee, Television Producer, Journalist and Author
"The faster we feed the mass media beast, the faster it devours us. Step back, read Rosenberg and Feldman, then step even further back and start thinking how to save yourselves and democracy from the tsunami of blarney, blather, and bathos that passes as news today." - Bill Moyers
"The authors' premise, that a demand for a constant flow of information via the Internet and cable news networks has led to inaccuracies in reporting, is a popular refrain and one with merit. The many quotes the authors have collected from media giants such as Jim Lehrer and Arianna Huffington present the challenges facing news outlets as changing technologies, most notably the Internet, interact with traditional media." -Publishers Weekly
"Compelling and insightful...any reader who wants to understand how news outlets such as CNN are run might appreciate a behind-the-scenes glimpse from a longtime insider." -Dinesh Ramdem, Carroll County Times
Mention -Book News, February 2009
"Left, right? Crushed between? You need this book. Read it." - Ray Bradbury
"Rosenberg and Feldman deliver a caustic take on today's speed-driven news media, along with a warning to news consumers: Get smarter about the information you rely on, since there's no hope of slowing it down." - Deborah Potter, former CBS News correspondent; Executive Director, NewsLab
Howard Rosenberg and Charles Feldman capture both the serious dangers and the intense competitive pressures of today's 24 hour news cycle. The traditional policy of "getting it right" often has been replaced by the urgency of "getting it first." Today's news culture rewards those who achieve both speed and accuracy. It awards no praise for second place or reporting inaccurately. Howard and Charles witnessed firsthand the accelerating speed and the decelerating standards in two of the finest news organizations in the nation, Los Angeles Times and CNN. Their book is a very provocative read." - Tom Johnson, Former chief executive, CNN; Former CEO, Los Angeles Times
"This book deals with one of the most critical issues of our time: the ability of the news media to provide understanding and perspective of the world around us. Journalism has been defined as the "search for reportable truth." No Time to Think shines light on key reasons for abuse of analytical reporting. Speed and greed combined with the explosion of technology is exposed in this timely book by these expert, experienced, authors. They point out the half-truths, the misconstrued truths and outright lies that permeate the 24-hour news cycle. I recommend that everyone who cares about our democracy read No Time to Think, then think it over carefully." - Dr. Judith Marlane, Professor Emeritus, Cinema and Television Arts, California State University, Northridge, USA; Author of Women in Television News Revisited
"In No Time to Think, Howard Rosenberg and Charles Feldman take a refreshing pause to contemplate today's superheated media environment and the implications of 'Shoot first, think later' news. The book deftly captures this relatively new dynamic and its depressing implications for journalism and democracy -- and should be required reading for anyone who cares about either. Breezily written, it's a sobering reminder of the often-overlooked price tag associated with headlong technological advancement." - Brian Lowry, media columnist/chief TV critic, Variety
"Veteran journalists Rosenberg and Feldman examine the shrinking news cycle - the period of time between when a news event occurs and its reportage - through a series of incisive essays. They decry the reckless speed at which stories appear in print, electronic, and broadcast media, which sacrifices journalistic integrity and fact-checking processes...Similar in tone to Rosenberg's Not So Prime Time: Chasing the Trivial on American Television, this book pulls no punches in its assessment of the profession. Recommended for academic and public libraries." - Regina M. Beard, Library Journal, October 1, 2008
