The Manicou Report

Dear CNC3,

You and I really need to talk. I am becoming increasingly disillusioned when it comes to your newscasts. You all started out great and roped me in as a viewer during Trinidad and Tobago’s journey through the 2006 World Cup in Germany. I was really pleased by the quality of reports coming out of Germany especially as TV6, the rights holders of the broadcast in T&T, was doing a piss-poor job of covering the hoopla surrounding the Soca Warriors, which was the 2nd most important thing to me. When TV6 was contented with bringing us capsule reports from what I almost mistook for a drunk fan, you all dished out the money to send Roger Sant and a camera crew to Germany. I wanted to see it all, and Roger and his crew came pretty close to delivering it. That to me was an excellent decision and I haven’t looked at a TV6 newscast since.

I understand that you are still a young station, even though you do posses a crop of experienced journalist from current and former TV stations, as well as radio and the print media. I have learned to ignore it when Astil Renn (sp?) butchers the names of the people he’s reporting on. And while we’re on the topic, Astil Renn isn’t really a reporter is he? And if he is, he’s probably more of a print guy than a TV & Radio guy, right? Anyway, I’ve also forgiven you for letting Carla Foderingham go on to head the T&T film company - forgiven but not forgotten. I’ve even managed to ignore temporarily, the really terrible technical aspects of the CNC3 7pm news - the lost videos, the incorrect videos, the cringe-worthy pauses while master control tries to locate the correct video and the really bad CGI set.

But what I’m really disappointed me last night was a report last night on the ANSA McAl conglomerate. I think it’s great that ANSA McAl wants to put out a book. The thought of a massive conglomerate putting out a book is the sort of thing that makes me feel all warm inside and it makes me remember the days when I used to curl up at nights with a good yarn. So hey, the ANSA McAl book, excellent. However, in the 3-minute-plus report, I think you all forgot to mention that CNC3 was owned my ANSA Mcal. In fact, I wonder if that bit of information was left out on purpose.

In introducing the Focus on Business segment, Francesca Hawkins mentioned ANSA McAl’s interests with included “manufacturing, finance, the beverage industry, insurance and banking”, but somehow didn’t mention ANSA McAl’s media interests. That’s a little interesting isn’t it?

Now, I know that ANSA McAl is a mammoth-sized company. I’m aware that Francesca’s list was just a brief overview, but it’s a very obvious omission. Isn’t the failure to mention the relationship between the two companies a conflict of interest? Even the mighty CNN does not report on AOL Time Warner without mentioning at the end that they are owned by the latter. So how does CNC3 air this entire Focus on Business segment and not say, “By the way, blah, blah, blah”. That’s a little shady if you ask me. When the teaser for the story is, “ANSA McAl: A Success Story”, I have to wonder was that segment news, or an advertisement? Did your reporters find the story, or were they directed to cover it? Should I have to wonder if it’s news or an ad? Is the business news self-promotion or a swipe at another competing company? Is trying to decide worth the hassle?

ANSA McAl’s Media and Communications Sector Page

You see, little things like that make me distrust and subsequently rethink the source of my news. Silly little things like that make me very suspicious that what I’m looking at may not be news at all, but instead a broadcast for a captive and uninformed audience.

If you aired this segment after the news was concluded, I wouldn’t care one bit (and honestly, I probably wouldn’t watch either). But the decision to slide this “story” in between the weather report and the regional news is sly to say the least.You see it really is a precarious position when you oversee so much, and so far I can’t say that you are juggling it all too well. The late night news, especially for me, is something that is supposed to be honest and pure, and unfortunately, it is all too easy to taint it. A pinch of arsenic in a tank of water might as well be a pound. Either way, I’m going to avoid it. If you ask me, my perception is that CNC3 has tainted their newscast. I don’t know whether this is the first time if they’ve ever done this, or if it’s the first time I’ve ever seen or noticed, but I should let you know that that’s a bad, bad practice.

I can’t say whether or not I will ever watch again, but my eyes are opened know.

Mani

P.S. - I hear Sampson is back?