When Crisis Strikes Home, Viewers Turn To Hometown TV Stations - Bill Fine-TVB

The Boston Marathon is a major annual event a spectacle all Bostonians know will always receive widespread local television coverage typically uplifting stories of athletic endurance We live for and love the third Monday in April It is our own special holiday and the world shares it with us However in one jarring moment and then another 13 seconds later this year39s race immediately pivoted from celebrating the triumph of the human spirit to witnessing the devastation of terrorism In the immediate moments that followed and stretch to today and beyond the people of Boston demonstrated the kind of human endurance seen in elite athletes as well as heroism reminiscent of the courage of our historic patriotsToday39s patriots are the first responders They are the ones who put the public39s safety above their own amp8211 police fire and medical personnel who rush into dangerous situations without delay They are also ordinary citizens who react with extraordinary valor Everyone has seen the amazing pictures showing despite the uncertainty of how many more bombs may have been planted in Copley Square hundreds of police firefighters medical staff volunteers and everyday citizens rushing to save lives Through the lens of television we have a shared collective consciousness of that tragic day and the searing image of the heroics of these modernday MinutemenThe local broadcast stations themselves are a crucial part of this firstresponse team Boston39s big four stations were on the air in mere minutes providing the necessary vital information to a community plunged into crisis It is exactly during moments like these that local television is often at its best not only delivering the want to know information but more importantly the need to know information that39s critical for public safety Federal state and local officials relied upon local broadcasters to relay this information to the public in the best most farreaching way possible on TelevisionThe Marathon Bombing is yet the latest example of the absolute necessity of preserving our local broadcasting system When all else fails overtheair broadcasting does not People know that they39re not alone when they hear the voice of their trusted local news anchor With the additional resources of streaming video web and social media we also served anxious Bostonians living away from home and desperate for information Every Boston television station provided its affiliated network and cable networks picking up our signals with better pictures and more important better information than any national source Our connection with viewers led to numerous tips calls from the scene pictures and videos all of which helped us communicate the necessary informationWhen the bombs went off in Copley Square they represented an attack on all of Boston amp8211 and all of the United States The local television stations had to be the eyes and ears for those who weren39t there Local reporters provided a way for the public to deal with the shock of the moment It39s human nature to need to understand amp8211 especially during times of great emotion amp8211 and the best person for that job is the local news professional When the unthinkable happens these local broadcasters are ready to deliver the facts as they develop to help to reestablish the emotional security of the community Moreover local broadcasters connect their local community to the national communityLocal TV reporters possess the home team advantage we are Boston natives who know the streets and the people and who could pinpoint exactly where the shootouts between police and the terrorists were unfolding When our news personnel responded to the climactic breaking events in Watertown they knew that they were in a suburb of Boston not a section of Boston as many outside sources reported Local connections paid off in ways both big and small amp8211 from relationships with municipal resources for more reliable information to knowing which street corners to stand on for direct access to breaking events Simply put local broadcasters are nimble in their market knowledge while outside national media need to navigate unfamiliar territoryLocal broadcast stations nationwide have been the communications linchpin during many times of massive local disaster amp173 amp8211 whether Katrina Aurora Oklahoma City Newtown Virginia Tech 911 or now Boston Viewers have relied upon local television to provide emotional touchstones amp8211 for understanding and for healingAs a Massachusetts native and a broadcaster in Boston for most of the past 31years I39m extremely proud that our local television broadcast community continues to be the leading source of credible information for this terrible event Each and every member of the news community was touched by this tragedy We are now all engaged in helping the city and region heal helping quotOne Fund Bostonquot raise well over 23 million in a mere few days every penny of it dedicated to the victims and their familiesOn that tragic day despite their own emotional toll our journalists dug in responding like the true professionals they are determined to bring the story to all through every outlet and means at our disposalMy Boston broadcast colleagues like so many of my station colleagues throughout the country before us responded to an immediate crisis with honor and grace We broadcast we streamed we posted and we shared Boston39s local television stations became a news source to the nationAnd through it all each of us remains Boston StrongBill Fine is President and General Manager WCVBTV Boston ampamp Chairman TVB Read all Bill39s MediaBizBloggers commentaries at Local Matters Check us out on Facebook at MediaBizBloggerscomFollow our Twitter updates MediaBizBloggerThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaBizBloggerscom management or associated bloggers MediaBizBloggers is an open thought leadership platform and readers may share their comments and opinions in response to all commentariesamp160

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When Crisis Strikes Home, Viewers Turn To Hometown TV Stations - Bill Fine-TVB

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