Y2K: An Open Letter to CNN

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Y2K: AN OPEN LETTER TO CNN

Thank you for your super coverage of the Kosovo refugee crisis and the Iraqi no-fly-zone violations. I'm confused. I guess I'll never know why we didn't just arrest that Serbian guy, Slobodan Milosevic, at any one of those peace tables if we really thought he was a war criminal. We could have planted khat or crack on him just for the arrest, then later dropped the charges. Also, a friend of mine over there says there were no refugee movements *until* NATO's Operation Allied Force began - other than a small handful (well documented by reairing the same video over and over) who had been tipped that the peace monitors were mysteriously withdrawing. I also heard this on BBC. See? It's confusing!

But, the real reason of my open letter is the incredible CNN coverage of the Year 2000 Computer Problem. I happened to catch your CNN Headline News "Tech Trends" spot on Saturday, April 10, 1999, at about 4:40 pm CDT covering the successful Y2K "millennium bug" test of the power industry. I was amazed and greatly relieved at how easily the problem was solved! When the Con Ed computer guy's screen went blank, all he had to do was reach for his cellular phone. Like he said, "It was that simple!" Not being much of a "techie", I just always knew that Bill Gates or somebody would come up with a silver bullet "Hollywood ending" to this thing.

For months, a software engineer friend of mine has been trying to convince us to get a single-panel solar system for backup power. You see, my mother is a dialysis outpatient and would die if power were interrupted for more than 3 days - our emergency battery life. I almost went bonkers and blew $580 on one, but now I know that this would be a foolish and unnecessary precaution and that, with cellular phone in hand, our family is now y2k-ready!

I'm posting this letter to the comp.software.year-2000 newsgroup on the Internet, hoping that computer whizzes will chime in with their thoughts on your in-depth coverage of y2k.

Lazlo Toth [ z m a @ r o c k e t m a i l . c o m ] Average American Citizen

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Related articles:

4/9/1999 - Power industry publicity stunt begins today, drill outcome already determined http://www.y2knewswire.com/19990409.htm

4/8/1999 - Reporting the Future, Y2K: Perspectives and Resources for the Media http://www.y2ktoday.com/modules/home/default.asp?id=1183&type=future

or download the 50-page guide (a must read for anyone in the media): http://www.y2ktoday.com/articles/reportingthefuture.pdf

4/8/1999 - Power utilities prepare wide-scale drill Y2K compliance not expected on June 30 deadline by David M. Bresnahan, author of "Cover Up: The Art and Science of Political Deception" http://www.worldnetdaily.com/bluesky_bresnahan/19990408_xex_power_utilit.shtml

4/5/1999 - Y2K and the Failure (So Far) of the Press http://www.y2ktoday.com/modules/home/default.asp?feature=true&id=1194

4/1/1999 - The Power Grid Non-Drill / Designing Successful Publicity http://geocities.com/Area51/Vault/1157/NERC-y2k.htm

Related discussions:

4/10/1999 - NERC Drill and poster ja4you: Our friendly wager http://www.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=000hkX

3/14/1999 - NERC INFO BLACKOUT / Y2K "readiness exceptions"? http://www.greenspun.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=000bkR

-- Zach Anderson (zma@rocketmail.com), April 12, 1999

Answers

Something tells me sarcasm addressed to media management is unproductive.

-- Tom Carey (tomcarey@mindspring.com), April 12, 1999.

They respond much better to being graded.

They also hate getting a "D minus" or an "F."

Sometimes they even ask why you gave them the grade you did. That spells "opportunity" for meaningful dialog.

Diane

-- Diane J. Squire (sacredspaces@yahoo.com), April 12, 1999.


Any reporter preparing the NERC drill story could have easily done a websearch to reveal that there was a lot of controversy being voiced over the planned test. Yet CNN mentioned no such criticism

I didn't know what to try other than sarcasm, but then again there is no excuse for the way the story was presented. I hope the Moneyline News Hour (6:30pm EDT, today and I believe the rest of the week) on CNN will be more alert to the potential dangers of downplaying Y2K. I saw the promo on the show where they will "sort fact from fiction" on Y2K. Try to catch it and tape it (with CNN permission, of course) in case the transcript is not listed at: http://cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/mlld.html

After seeing Saturday's "cellular solution" piece, I am concerned that the media is beginning a major "all is well" campaign which unfortunately may result in the needless loss of life.

BTW, if anyone knows anyone in the media, now is the time for your voice to be heard. The comp.software.year-2000 thread can be found at: http://www.dejanews.com/[ST_rn=ps]/viewthread.xp?search=thread&AN=4655 63260&svcclass=dnserver&frpage=

-- Zach Anderson (zma@rocketmail.com), April 13, 1999.


Spent MONTHS trying to convince family members of the dangers, and they spent MONTHS pointing to the mainstream media and the total lack of coverage of it. NOW they are covering it all right and here it is in a nutshell:

"HEY everything will be peachy keen! And now, on to Kosovo......"

-- preparing (preparing@home.com), April 13, 1999.


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