Nothing much to be said, really. Cover the innovative and quirky and edgy, but also remember Microsoft Bob and the Nintendo R.O.B.
For the love of God and all that is Holy (I hear he's on holiday, you may have to check with Pete at reception), learn from U.S. media. Oh, I don't mean cover anything like them. God, no. I meant, they actually read Twitter. And Facebook. And God only knows what else.
While I was in disfavour with God and therefore was not born a subject of Her Britannic Majesty and Defender of the Faith, I read foreign news media because I cannot bear my own, save for The Christian Science Monitor and The Boston Globe or The New York Times.
If one attempts to turn on the television to watch the news, you have one of three options:
- The Fox News Channel, which, as I see it, seems to be slightly further to the right of your own British National Party. (I would like to propose one small modification. It would be quite kindly of you, if you would, to selectively invoke the BNP's “reverse the tide” principle and have them remove Richard Quest from reporting for the U.S. CNN network. We'd really prefer it, if you'd be so good to help us out.) They mostly seem to be confused by a U.S. President with a Message, which is forgiveable in my eyes, as they were founded in 1996.
The last time we've had a campaign based on morality was in 1976, when we elected a peanut farmer to take Executive Office. To be fair, The Right Worshipful Jimmy Carter was running against The Right Honourable Representative for Grand Rapids, Michigan, Gerry Ford and The Right Honourable Senator for Kansas, Bob Dole. So it's not as if he were playing Brazil. Or even a junior rugby match. - You may watch Microsoft's National Broadcasting Company, as well, but they're mostly enjoying their ascendancy and attempting to out-slaver each other in their praise of all the movements of The Honourable Barack Obama, President of the United States of America. So it does become rather dull, sort of as if one should willingly watch a cricket match to appease an elderly but wealthy relative.
- And the last option is Cable News Network, the ones who are employing that gentleman I asked you to see if you could repatriate, or perhaps extradite. They seem to spend much of their time reading YouTube comments and "tweets" and whatever else. On air.
I strongly suggest that you make your indentured servants, or interns, or trainees, or whatever else you call them, comb through Web-based message boards, Twitter, YouTube and other such nonsense. First, they're doing it anyway. There's only so many times one can be sent out to fetch something. Secondly, “getting the scoop” is now an entirely different match. It's more along the lines of “finding the trend”.
I shouldn't recommend using Twitter as a verbatim source, but having people keep up very closely will allow them to do trend spotting very well. The gents down in the computer room, assuming they're not emulating Simon Travaglia that day, will happily tell the lackeys which search engines to use.
You have human filters. These days, we have nothing but computer filters, which allow us to accidentally post photographs of Karaoke night and send them to the same elderly relative you sat through the cricket with, and human filters who, as you may have noticed, have figured out that they're actively in danger of being placed on New Deal. Use them and use the hell out of them.
Best of luck on surviving the Internet age.
Jessica Allan
Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
