Communication Technology & Breaking Local News

    In April 2012, Greenland, New Hampshire police office approached the home of a known drug dealer.  Before they had a chance to knock on the door, they were met with gun fire and several of the officers were shot.  One of them, being the Greenland Police Chief was mortally wounded.

    News if this incident traveled quickly and with this being local breaking news, there was a need for immediate information. WMUR, the local New Hampshire news station provided a streaming update feed. I spent that evening watching the feed and scouring the internet for any snippets of information that I could find.

    The following link provides the updates from that streaming feed that went on from the time of the incident through the time of the memorial:

http://livewire.wmur.com/Event/Law_Enforcement_Memorial_For_Chief_Michael_Maloney?Page=0

    In addition to the stream of information provided online, there were videos and news reports on the local news channel as well. Without the current technology, this news would have been limited to the news stories of the past and the information would not have reached the masses until most likely the late night newscast and following day's newspaper.

    The news coverage followed up the story with live coverage of the memorial service. In the past, this type of coverage would be limited to the most famous, but with current technology, this is possible for any event of interest. It was an incredible event to witness in real time on television.  

    The following videos shows police officers marching and then the motorcycle cavalcade.

    Both of these videos were posted to YouTube by non-news media personnel. This gives an idea of what the news agencies are up against. When private individuals are providing the media, the news outlets are pressed to provide more in-depth information. This is a huge shift from how news has been typically reported.

    In today's world, the news professionals have to be fast and accurate, because the masses will provide information as well. In order to remain relevant, the news professionals need to provide up to the minute information, otherwise they will no longer be the go-to source for information.

Communication Technology & Breaking News in the Present

    Just last year, the news reported a bombing at the Boston Marathon. This event had incredible news coverage from the moment it happened and through the time that the bomber was eventually captured. This is a fantastic example of how much news media coverage has changed in recent years.  The news channels stayed with the story around the clock.

    There were many sources of information. One could follow the news as it was happening on Twitter. CNN created the following blog that posted information about the event and provided updates as they became available:

http://cnnpressroom.blogs.cnn.com/2013/04/15/cnn-coverage-of-deadly-blasts-near-the-boston-marathon-finish-line/

    Maybe the most impressive coverage was provided online as well as on television was the helicopter coverage of the hunt for the bomber. The following video shows the infrared footage where  Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was hiding inside of a boat.  The footage showed in real-time how investigators went about uncovering the boat with a robot and eventually capturing the suspect.

    Without the advances in technology, this coverage would never have been possible.  This example demonstrates how communication technology can provide real time information when there is breaking news rather than waiting for a second hand report from a reporter at a news desk with another field reporter on site.

    Today, thanks to advances in communication technology, we can see the news as it happens rather than waiting for the recap after the fact.

Communication Technology & Breaking News in the Past

     If you're old enough to remember the events that changed the world on September 11th, 2001, you will remember exactly where you were and what you were doing at the moment when you first heard that an airplane crashed into the World Trade Center in New York City. Now, take a moment to consider what you did next.

    I was at work in a large cubicle farm and a friend came by my desk to alert me of the news. We huddled her cubicle as she had a radio at her desk. We listened intently trying to make sense of what we were hearing. We also very likely logged onto CNN.com, which may have been difficult due to the increased network traffic making the radio the better option over the internet. The next few days were spent glued to the television to see the footage and understand the magnitude of what was happening as survivors were being rescued from the wreckage.  The following video is the breaking news broadcast from CNN.com:

    Today, the media communication is much different than it was more than ten years ago. If something as significant were happening today, the radio would not be my first choice of media outlet. I would likely hear about the tragedy on Facebook and would launch Twitter and search by a hashtag to find the up to the minute or even second update on what was happening.  I may or may not launch a news site to see what was being formally reported.

    Information is far more accessible than it was only ten years ago. The advances in communication are significant and have seriously impacted the news industry. In today's world the news industry has a tough job to get their reporters on site as quickly as possible to remain a reliable source of information and there is no longer any time to vet the information that is being gathered.