The Script

Reporters are driven by "scripts" that tell them how to frame and write a story. These scripts, which aren’t (usually) written down (making it a paradox to call them "scripts") are templates into which reporters pour the facts of particular stories. I recently blogged about

ONE SUCH SCRIPT.

But there are others.

Reporters really need scripts. They often don’t know how to do their job without them, and they often try to impose them on stories where the facts are otherwise.

Just yesterday I was doing an interview with a local TV reporter who kept trying to frame an ecclesiastical issue in terms of the Church "gaining support" or "losing support" regarding a particular matter. I kept having to explain to him, "This is not a political matter. It’s not about gaining or losing support. It is about being faithful to historic Christian values."

What happens when a reporter comes across facts that don’t fit his script? One of several things. He may dig deeper to try to make the facts fit the script. That’s what was happening with the reporter who kept asking me politically-framed questions about the Church. He was trying to get the facts to fit the script he had in mind for the story.

If digging deeper doesn’t work, an unscrupulous reporter may simply make stuff up to get the story he wants.

But if he doesn’t go that route and the facts still don’t fit the script, he may simply spike the story.

Author: Jimmy Akin

Jimmy was born in Texas, grew up nominally Protestant, but at age 20 experienced a profound conversion to Christ. Planning on becoming a Protestant seminary professor, he started an intensive study of the Bible. But the more he immersed himself in Scripture the more he found to support the Catholic faith, and in 1992 he entered the Catholic Church. His conversion story, "A Triumph and a Tragedy," is published in Surprised by Truth. Besides being an author, Jimmy is the Senior Apologist at Catholic Answers, a contributing editor to Catholic Answers Magazine, and a weekly guest on "Catholic Answers Live."

3 thoughts on “The Script”

  1. hey jim, tried to make a comment on the robe masters, error page pop up!tried to make comments on terri s. case other blogs and the error page comes up! the photo of the boy arressted is on yahoo… a child is handcuffed and put in a cop’s car for having a glass of water!
    what next you disagree with a courts decision and get aressted?

  2. The MSM have skillfully crafted the illusion that what they do is a benevolent public service rather than a profit-driven industry.
    Don Henley had it pegged-
    Well, I could have been an actor,
    but I wound up here.
    I just have to look good,
    I don’t have to be clear.
    Come and whisper in my ear,
    give me dirty laundry.
    (from his song “Dirty Laundry”)

  3. The Terri Schiavo case is a good example of a script. I’ve actually had to turn off the TV news because of the bad reporting on this case. Just last night on the local news (LA), channel 5’s Hal Fishman had the lead story with the background of a picture of Terri with the caption of “Right to Die”. I immediately switched to channel 9 where David Jackson was describing Terri as being “comatose”.
    Last night and the night before they have been touting the “surveys” that show that a majority of Americans being in favor of letting Terri die. Of course the survey was highly biased (go check out Ed Morrisey’s analysis at Captiansquarterblog.com for details).
    Everything the MSM is reporting fits into the script of the culture of death.

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