This Just In: SoCal vs International News Coverage
A Quick Glance at Media Globalization
Tuesday evening I watched two different versions of nightly television news.
First, I watched the 8:00 p.m. segment of KCAL 9, a local news channel broadcasting to the Los Angeles area. Second, I watched BBC World News at 9:00 p.m., an international broadcast.
Globalization:
News travels differently around the world with some places receiving limited or strained content. Others receive a liberal and vast supply of free information. This is known as globalization.
Here are the similarities and differences I found in my mini globalization investigation.
*The following observations are based upon watching the full 30 minute BBC program and half of the 60-minute KCAL9 segment.
Greetings
The BBC News immediately starts with a warm welcome before addressing headlines.
“This is BBC News, very warm welcome if you’re watching here in the UK or around the globe”. -Mike Hemblry
KCAL9 News starts its broadcast by listing out a total of three headlines before welcoming viewers.
Between the two channels, there is a difference in tone. The BBC newscast projects a sense of pace. KCAL9 projects a sense of urgency.
Headlines
An overview of the initial headlines shows a difference in immediate story priority.
Right away, KCAL9 News provides Southern California residents with strictly local stories that are just breaking. Meanwhile, the BBC provides its viewers with information on surrounding countries followed by U.S. updates.
KCAL9: Breaking News
- Explosion in Ontario, CA.
- Business Owners and Covid: First Anniversary.
- Long Beach Police goes door-to-door.
BBC Headlines
- Decade of Conflict in Syria.
- Brazil: Coronavirus Deaths
- Europe’s Covid-19 Vaccine Suspensions
- U.S. Georgia: Atlanta Shootings Arrests
- U.S.: Uber Employment Changes.
Report Summary
Within my 30-minute viewing of each news outlet, I observed many different stories and accounts. From the BBC this involved outrage in Syrian war, Covid-19 status updates of collapsing Brazilian hospitals, UK Uber drivers becoming employees, just to name a few.
To my surprise, the BBC also reported a great deal on American events. This included updates on the status of U.S. immigration relating to the Biden administration, Tiger Woods, breaking news of Georgia shootings, and Russian-American relations surrounding the recent presidential election.
However, the reporting of U.S. events from the BBC is not equally matched by KCAL9 reporting of international news. International coverage was limited to one story discussing Europe’s vaccine suspensions.
As expected, the SoCal channel shared many local issues and events. These stories placed a great emphasis on the status of Covid-19 within surrounding counties and new clinical trials of the Moderna vaccine within other states. There was also coverage of weather, St. Patrick’s Day festivities, and the French Bulldog taking the title of L.A.’s favorite breed.
Final Thoughts
The flow of information occurs at different levels within human communication. Such disparity can be visualized in the comparison of local and international news broadcasts. In doing so, media and communications research can seek to explain methods of message dissemination and seek to answer hard-hitting questions:
Why does international news report on U.S. events, but North American news does not?
