Skip to main content

Balloon Boy

Submitted by Gene Patterson on October 15, 2009 - 9:37pm

Were you as surprised as I was that all the major networks led their newscasts tonight with the story of the "balloon boy?"

No doubt it generated lots of interest and for good reason. In the early moments of the story, everyone was concerned about the fate of a 6 year old boy who might be trapped inside that high flying balloon. 

But really - once the boy was discovered safe and sound at home - was this a major national story?  Or for that matter, was it even a story?

Here's what the Huffington Report thinks.  I agree.

 

Comments

Please keep your comments civil and to the point. Posting comments is a privilege, not a right. If you abuse that privilege with profane, threatening or abusive language your comment will be deleted.

Comments

Re: Balloon Family Story

Submitted by Lesly (not verified) on October 16, 2009 - 5:31pm.
I am very concerned this was a staged occerence for publicity. I began to think in the manner within two hours of the reporting of this story.

I was drawn in by the elegant

Submitted by BayardJDonahoo (not verified) on October 19, 2009 - 10:21pm.
I was drawn in by the elegant simplicity and pathos of this story. It was a drama that we all could agree on. We were willingly bound together in empathy and hope for this little boy, adrift alone, in the sky. We were an audience of one mind, no hidden agendas, no slanted coverage. As for Huffington's argument that the aftermath is not newsworthy, it is simply wrong. The power and purity of the initial story captured tens of millions of viewers, listeners and readers. The revelation that it was all a deception does stain the story, but it's a story we are still interested in.

Post new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.