Another News Channel Abandons ‘Advertising Trick’ Of ‘Breaking News’ Coverage

Monday morning brought us the news that MSNBC chief Phil Griffin rejects “breaking news coverage” as being part of his network’s “brand.” It seems as though similar abandonments of “breaking news” have been made by other news stations — namely WDRB-TV, Fox’s affiliate in Louisville, Ky.

In a slick new advertisement released Monday afternoon, WDRB urged its viewers to recognize that “breaking news” is simply a “marketing ploy.” The narrator asserted that stations claiming to be “first” in “breaking news” use that branding as an “advertising trick” despite it being “simply not true.”

“Breaking news is seldom breaking,” the narrator continued, “and quite often isn’t even news.”

WDRB, he said, will never use the term “breaking news” because “we believe that your relationship with a television station shouldn’t begin with deception.”

“Many times, our coverage is first,” he noted, “but it is always based on good, solid journalism,” before concluding:

“The next time you hear a TV station breathlessly shouting ‘Breaking News,’ ask yourself this: Is this important to me? Is this really breaking? And is this even really news? If not, maybe what you need is better journalism.”

Watch the hard-hitting ad below, via WDRB:

[h/t FTVLive]

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