Anybody who thinks that “the media” is somehow enjoying the COVID-19 pandemic, or reporting on it solely to spread fear or generate clicks – WRONG.
Believe it or not, “the media” is me and my friends and co-workers who live right here, too – and we are experiencing the exact same thing as everyone else. Work at home – social distancing – no dining out – worried about loved ones (especially those are more vulnerable), stressing about our kids (my daughter is 35 weeks pregnant!), wondering if we will be able to find TP if we run out, and so on.
Reporting what is happening in our community and across Montana is not “spreading fear” or “causing panic.” It is telling people what is happening – literally. When we report that the governor has ordered “stay at home,” it doesn’t mean that WE (media) have ordered it (or even condoned it, necessarily). When we report that restaurants have to close their dining rooms and can only do take-out/delivery, we are doing it so that people KNOW WHAT IS HAPPENING – and WHY. The “media” is not causing the restaurants to close their dining rooms. And when we report on the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases – that is literally what we are doing – telling people how many cases have been confirmed, and giving people reference points so that they can understand the spread of the virus across Montana. And when we report that “non-essential businesses” have been ordered to close, it is not “the media” making the request.
As for complaints that “the media’ is not telling people the name and home address of the patients – come on, folks. You know about HIPAA and federal privacy laws just as well as we do. We literally can not force public health officials to tell us the names and towns of COVID-19 patients – we ask and we ask and we ask, and are met every single time with “…patient privacy laws prohibit us from releasing…etc…” Unless and until the federal government suspends HIPAA or makes some sort of temporary “pandemic suspension” of privacy laws, there is nothing “the media” can do in regards to telling you exactly where these patients are or have been.
(NOTE: I am referring specifically to “local” media — what the cable news channels are doing is NOT what I am talking about. CNN/Fox/etc can’t help but inject politics and hype into everything)
On a more personal note: the restriction on dining at restaurants is really sad for me – most of you know that one of my “hobbies” is eating at restaurants! It might sound strange, but dining out is literally one of my favorite things to do with my wife and friends. I miss the Bighorn, the Double Barrel, the Montana Club, Cafe Rio, 3D, McDonald’s, The Block, and so many more! The last two weeks have been utterly bizarre for me – never in my adult life have I gone this long without dining out.
As for my on-air co-workers – believe me, it is very frustrating for them to be restricted mostly to Zoom/FaceTime interviews – they genuinely love actually being out IN the community, meeting new people, and reporting on events!
Here’s a screenshot of our most recent staff meeting, conducted via Zoom:
Believe me – there is nothing that I (and my co-workers) would love more than for this to simply disappear so that everything can get back to normal!
As for whether or not I think the current restrictions are good, bad, or other? Well, they are restrictions, and that never feels good – but I honestly believe that they are well-intentioned and WILL help slow the spread of COVID-19. It’s both fascinating and horrifying – the U.S. is literally trying to do something never before done in history on such a scale – to stop or at least dramatically slow a pandemic. I know that it is taking a huge and terrible toll on many people and our economy, and the effects are both immediate and long-term. It’s too large to think about or grasp at this point, to be honest.
As for me – I am doing my absolute best to report timely, accurate, and relevant information about what is happening.
