CNN Visits Again

CNN's Anderson Cooper broadcast live from New Orleans again on Monday night. Cooper has hosted his nightly news show, AC 360, a number of times in the past year, and anything that brings attention and awareness to the region is a positive for the recovery efforts. It's important to get the message out that this area is a long way from being back to normal. Hurricane Season is also underway and stories focusing on the work on the levees and water pumping stations is extremely timely and relevant.

(for more on AC 360 and Cooper's blog, go to: www.cnn.com/CNN/Programs/anderson.cooper.360/blog/)

Unfortunately, Monday's telecast continued a trend that Cooper's show, and the media in general, demonstrates when it comes to 'talking about' New Orleans. That is, they remain enamored with a constant focus on the Lower 9th Ward, as well as on the crime and violence. Memo to mainstream media: there is much more going on than peril in the 9th Ward and murders in the neighborhoods, and it's time that the media power brokers (CNN, Fox News, Time and Newsweek) recognize that.

There are a number of areas equally, if not more, vulnerable to potential levee breaches than the Lower 9th Ward. Cooper spoke live with Col. Jeffrey Bedey, who leads the Army Corps of Engineers Hurricane Protection Office, and before wrapping up his interview asked the Col. what he would tell people who wanted to come back to the 9th Ward about the state of the levees. Well, Anderson, what about the people who are already in or might want to come back to St. Bernard Parish, the West Bank, or Plaquemines Parish? I understand Cooper used the Lower 9th Ward as an example to frame a legitimate question. Still, it's irresponsible for the media to continue giving the impression that that one area is the only one struggling or affected. Lower 9th Ward residents themselves should not be thrilled with this. They and their neighborhood were and still are used by the media because it makes for sexier story-telling.

The fact is there is an entire REGION, and not just one neighborhood, that is in peril still and could very well be facing a treacherous 4 months if Hurricane Season turns out to be as active as some are predicting it to be. Of course, listening to the mainstream media, you wouldn't know this.

The other bothersome part of Monday's newscast centered around two of its feature pieces. One consisted of another story on violence in the city. Yes, the reality is that crime is still a major problem in New Orleans. CNN cited a chilling statistic -- the murder rate in New Orleans currently sits at one murder per 1,400 residents. That's pretty high, especially when you consider it's one per 14,000 residents in New York City. But, reality also says that much of the violence is centered around drug and gang activity. Just about every murder I read about it in the paper or hear about on the news falls into those categories. Well, isn't that the case in most major urban areas? Ask the folks of Baltimore, Md, if the homicide rate there helps them to sleep easy at night. There were over 400 murders in that city last year, and they're currently on track to top that in 2007.

The problem that's unique to New Orleans is that the police force has remained under-staffed since Katrina. CNN does point this out; in fact, it has focused on this angle several times. My point, though, is two-fold: a.) we've heard this story before, many times over; b.) spend some time doing features on some positive recovery stories, people who have made it back, rebuilt their homes, are helping others, etc.

A second feature that ran focused on FEMA trailers that have been vandalized, presumably by their owners, and having been collected by the government now sit in a lot almost useless. Three times the correspondent doing the story made reference to how tax-payer dollars paid for these trailers and now they're damaged goods. Are you kidding me?

I don't care how much we, AS AMERICAN CITIZENS, spent in our tax dollars in order to help FELLOW AMERICAN CITIZENS who were in need. Shoot, I don't care if all my tax money found its way down to the Gulf Coast region to pay for something. Whatever the amount is, it's not enough. And, if some of what "my tax dollars" funded is now damaged, so be it. That is the last thing on my mind and should be the last thing on just about anyone's. Instead, FEMA and the media should be focusing on why it is some of these trailers are damaged. Perhaps people's stress levels are through the roof. Perhaps people who have been stiffed by the insurance companies and put on the backburner by the Federal Government's Road Home Program need money. Perhaps the trailers are completely inadequate to house Oscar Madison let alone a family of four.

No, I'm not excusing stealing, or vandalism, or blatant disregard for someone else's property. It's unfortunate it even has to happen. But the reality is the conditions and state of affairs in the New Orleans area lend to this kind of stuff being inevitable. Live with it, and work on what really needs to be fixed, such as getting residents the money they need to rebuild their homes.

CNN and Cooper aren't totally off the mark. I give them credit for being down there every few weeks for over a year now (at least that's how often it seems AC 360 broadcasts live from there). It's a great help in terms of raising awareness and bringing this region to the forefront. But like most of the mainstream media, AC 360 needs to relax the focus on the Lower 9th Ward and stories related to crime rates. There's a lot more going on in New Orleans, good and bad.

Quick Sports Take: I could not be happier that the ratings for the first two games of the NBA Finals are tanking. Dennis Rodman's career scoring average was higher than the marks Games 1 and 2 pulled in. Sopranos or no Sopranos interference on Sunday night, David Stern's product is a joke. If he wants to "allow" ESPN/ABC to call the shots and therefore have a five-day layoff of no basketball before Game 1 and then another three-day layoff before Game 2, well David, you get what you deserve. No, it's not Stern's fault that the Spurs are an absolute bore, or that Cleveland is not capable of making of making this series interesting (although Lebron will win a championship or three someday). Still, this is 95% the league's own doing, and we couldn't be happier with their payoff.