USC Annenberg Professor Judy Muller was recently quoted by the New York Times and Marketplace about the extensive coverage of the disappearance of and search for Flight 370.
“I fear I am part of the problem,” Muller told the New York Times. “I keep tuning in to see if there are any new clues.”
Muller, who is also a former ABC correspondent, added that the lack of confirmed facts has shaped the coverage tremendously.
“The problem is that when there is nothing new, you have a ton of talking heads blathering on, which gets them into speculation, which is not information,” Muller told Marketplace.
But, she added, most news stations can’t wait on new information, “because that’s not what drives ratings.”