This story has legs

In all the years I have been involved with ‘news’ I have never known such wall to wall coverage of the current few topics by today’s media.

There is an unhealthy obsession with how the Prime Minister paid for the refurbishment of his flat. 

While it is important to find the answer does it need to be front page lead and first news item on television and radio for a week or more? Old reporters had a phrase for it ... the story has legs.

To me, this one is a marathon.

Coronavirus has inevitably dominated the news for over a year and yet we are still have the Health Secretary giving solemn press conferences.

And with the UK basking in its success with vaccinations, the emphasis is now on India. We are plied non stop with harrowing stories. 

The BBC this week devoted a whole day to running the sad story.

It is right that the world knows of this but do we need to see burning pyres and do photographers need to be getting in the way of stressed nursing staff to get us ever more distressing views? There is so little we can do and the only benefit of such coverage might be to galvanise international support. But what of Brazil and other countries so much worse than the fortunate countries.

There was the death and funeral of Prince Philip and now attention has switched to Prince William and Kate’s tenth wedding anniversary.

For me, there is too much public relations and not enough news in much of the coverage, apart from political manoeuvring.

What has happened to editing?