For about 45 minutes on Friday, cable networks scrambled to cover the story of a suspicious “package” found in Times Square. The “package” turned out to be a cooler reportedly filled with water bottles and, for some reason, books.
Nonetheless, all three major cable nets went with wall-to-wall coverage.
The episode was over so quickly, I didn’t even have a chance to tune into the cable coverage. But a few notes on the cable coverage, via Twitter.
“Pretty surprised to see none of the local New York stations are covering Times Sq. story. Sticking with soaps and [court] shows.”
>> Village Voice editor Tony Ortega:
“Does CNN really have to have Ali Velshi broadcasting from Times Square on a cellphone camera like he's in a far-flung war zone? Come on.”
>> The New York Post (via NPR) offers a reason why news outlets were justified in their hyper coverage:
"The package was reportedly near the intersection of 45th St. and Broadway near the Marriott Marquis hotel. That is the same corner where an SUV was parked Saturday in a failed attempt to detonate the vehicle in Times Square. The Nissan Pathfinder was loaded with propane, gasoline and fireworks."
>> The opportunistic Onion dips into its video vault:
“Suspicious Package Industry Falls on Hard Times”
