Modern media

Posted on January 28, 2016 by bvanrysdam

It was 30 years ago today when the space shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after take-off. That event was a sad moment in American history, but it also reminded me on how much news coverage has changed.

30 years ago, I was working at KTRH, a news station that sent its own reporter to cover the launch. There was much excitement surrounding the fact that a high school teacher named Christa McAuliffe was selected to join the crew and participate in the mission and the powers that be at the station felt it important to be there live.

While all the major radio networks signed off the air after one minute into the mission, KTRH continued to broadcast the fatal launch and was first to let listeners know about the tragic events that followed. Reporter Sue Davis did a remarkable job of describing the scene while other media outlets scrambled to get back on the air.

I wonder how many local media outlets today would send a reporter and cover and event like that today. In a day of media consolidation and lack of competition, it seems that, more and more, we have to rely on a few outlets for our news coverage.

During the 1992 presidential election, KTRH sent reporters to all three candidate headquarters on election night, bringing local insight on what was the most important thing happening at that moment. Today, we’re lucky if a radio station will bother to broadcast radio network coverage. Yes, TV still does a pretty good job of covering major events, but it’s national coverage and can’t tell us what impact it could have on Houston and the Gulf Coast.

Maybe in today’s world of internet media, where everyone is a journalist, having a local source for news and information is passé, but I still like to know who I’m getting my news from and not rely on some blogger sitting at computer a thousand miles away from what is taking place.

I know this sounds like “back in my day”. Maybe I’m beginning to understand what that really means.

Finger-Pointing fans

Posted on January 11, 2016 by bvanrysdam

There has been a lot of finger pointing in the wake of the Houston Texans 30 – 0 play-off loss to the K.C. Chiefs. They main villain is Q.B. Brian Hoyer, who safe to say, had a pretty bad game, but the blame cannot and should fall on just on his shoulders.

While stats don’t win games, it is interesting to note that Houston and K.C. had the exact same number of plays (62), but K.C. had a big advantage in time of possession (34:25 vs. 25:35). K.C. also averaged 5.1 yards per play meaning they basically earned a first down every two plays.

And let’s talk about dropped passes. Nat Washington was open on many plays but could not hold onto the ball (when Hoyer wasn’t throwing it to a Chief). Ryan Griffin had a chance to put the Texans on the goal line, but could not come up with the catch. Going into the game, the Texans had an NFL-worst 28 drops out of 328 catchable passes in 2015, the Houston offense is at the bottom of the League in that category.

Do we even want to bring up having J.J. Watt try to run the ball behind Vince Woolfolk?

Yes, Hoyer had an awful game, but the team was only down by 13 points at halftime with the hometown faithful booing their beloved Texans back to the locker room. Hoyer does not call the plays, but I would be curious to know why the Texans attempted 34 passes vs. rushing the ball 25 times. The Texans were gaining an average of 4.6 yards per rush. That sure looks better than Hoyer dropping back into the pocket.

And the winner is…

Posted on January 4, 2016 by bvanrysdam

The Iowa caucuses are almost here (thank goodness) and the political pundits continue to weave their opinions and best guess scenarios on who will emerge victorious, but why? When it comes to Republican candidates, the good people of Iowa have a spotty record of selecting who will win the party nomination.

In 2012, Rick Santorum received 25 percent of the vote along with Mitt Romney. Ron Paul garnered 21 percent with Newt Gingrich, Michele Bachmann and Jon Huntsman rounding out the field. In 2008, Mike Huckabee got 34 percent of the vote, Romney with 25 percent John McCain, the eventual nominee getting only 13 percent.

The 2012 Republican caucuses also had some drama associated it. Initial results showed Romney beat Santorum by just 8 votes, but when the final results came out two weeks later Santorum secured the victory over Romney by a margin of 34 votes with Paul in a strong 3rd. Results were certified by the Caucus but not by the Republican party who declared it a split decision due to missing reports from 8 precincts, however they later certified the caucus as a win for Santorum. The caucus winner changed yet again when the Iowa delegate totals were finally determined giving Paul the win along with several other states that same weekend.

So again, why is Iowa so important? Sure it’s nice to have momentum and winning is always better than losing, but the Iowa caucuses reminds me a lot of pre-season football games. It’s a chance for the candidates to practice and get in shape for the real game; Super Tuesday.