Despicable Media Journalism Against Space Science

July 17th, 2012

I’m looking for a link or a video, but not finding one.  Let me paraphrase if I can what I saw Erin Burnett just do on CNN about NASA’s upcoming landing of Curiosity on Mars.

She accused NASA of playing up the drama of the Mars landing in an attempt to gain support in opposition $300,000,000 in proposed cuts to planetary exploration.

So fucking what?!  Is there anything more dramatic than humans landing a spaceship on an alien planet?  What, a young blonde girl missing in the 3rd world or a sex scandal among political candidates?

And is NASA actually GREAT or even mildly GOOD at stirring up drama in the 21st century?  If they are, the media hasn’t covered it.

I really want to use inappropriate words about this miserable excuse for a reporter.  Science didn’t used to get politicized, and now somehow charlatans are being put on air to question if agencies trying to do science are being overly dramatic when they’re being underly dramatic for decades.

Ir’s shameful.

NASA is calling the landing “daring” and the “most difficult” in its history.  And Erin Burnett, the likely science idiot most mainstream journalists are these days, is suggesting that they’re doing it only because their budget is being cut.

Maybe they’re doing daring shit because they don’t have the budget to do the safe shit.  I don’t know that isn’t the case, because CNN is failing to do any real reporting of the facts, just letting reporters trying to be dramatic try to be dramatic.  Maybe her job is threatened?  Shit, I don’t know.  I wish there was a real reporter around to let me know.

NASA is trying to do public outreach and provide direct outlets for news.  Maybe in the internet age, CNN and their ilk is useless and they’re retaliating.  Hell, CNN ratings are falling and they’re just being dramatic to try to keep viewers.  I have as much authority offering an opinion as Erin what’s her name.

Let me suggest that good reporting of the facts and the best arguments about any particular issues are the way to keep viewers.  Ignorant spewed opinions without substantiation are not.

Look, I really just had a cow watching a report draw an unsupported conclusion about NASA’s efforts to share Curiosity’s landing with public with a thinly veiled attempt to avoid budget cuts.  If NASA and exploring Mars is only about the money, fuck us all.  I don’t believe that, however, and think people like this asshole on CNN need to be called out.  This was just a cheap shot based on uninformed opinion, in my opinion.

Offensive.

Apparently Erin Burnett also finds it hilarious that NASA puts uncertainties on the number of Earth-threatening asteroids.  Is there someplace where we can vote her off TV as “too dumb to report?”  She’s advertised as “smart and confident” but I find that hard to believe.

OK, found a transcript of the offensive bits.  She’s like, “God forbid if they find life,” like NASA will never shut up.  NASA’s Curiosity landing videos haven’t exactly taken the world by storm.  This woman is just offensive when she sees scientists actually getting excited about doing things exciting and daring.  She probably thinks daring is wearing an off-season color or not agreeing with her favorite pundit.  Asshole.

 

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