Small Plane Hits Apt Bldg - Richmond

[Retrovision]

Live pictures of the hole a small twin engine plane made, within the last hour, in an apartment building are being shown on CTV right now.

[Scott]

Sounds like a bad Friday. Just heard on the news that a large section of Surrey (King George Station area) has been closed because of a gas leak that has injured several and may have killed some.

[Retrovision]

Now confirmed: 1 fatality from this plane crash, 2 were onboard, and 2 injuries in the building.

[Hardy]

Late update on this off the 6-oclock news reports ... 1 on plane (pilot) dead at scene, 2 injured in apartment building - 1 serious, 1 minor.

News stations are reporting it was a Piper Seneca, a small twin engine plane capable of carrying 6 including pilot.

TSB investigators are expected to be on scene by 2000 hours (I would imagine that at least a few of their team are already there, as their sub-office IS in Richmond).

[Neil]

Does anyone remember seeing, a few months back, how CTV spent an entire hour of their newscast with their 'Chopper 9' hovering above some kid and his dog stuck on a hillside? Granted, today's plane story was somewhat more important, but they did pretty much the same thing again- the entire newscast, showing a more or less static shot of an apartment with a hole in it, interviewing every warm body who had a view of the scene, and repeating about three minutes worth of information, over and over. I switched away after about twenty minutes, and every time I came back, they were still at it. Same shot of the fireman, looking over the railing. CBC wasn't any better- essentially, radio on TV. Only Global had the sense to tell you the latest, and then go back to the rest of the news.

[Retrovision]

Slow news day - I wouldn't be singling anyone out, you should have seen the seemingly desperate scrum of reporters in the background of CTV's interview with one doctor who was working on the ground floor, pouncing with the ferocity of a rabid dog when CTV was done with their interview. As with consumerism, we demand it and they deliver, and if they won't deliver they won't be able to stay competitive. I do share your woes though, Neil.

[Northern Exploration]

Sounds familiar. CTV is quickly moving into CNN territory with breaking news on the spot happening right now on the scene first with live pictures interviewing witnesses from the situation room !!! With no doubt statements like "I don' t want to speculate" but then they speculate for hours on end and then have to back peddle when they discover the truth. ;D

[Retrovision]

pnwtraveler said:

Sounds familiar. CTV is quickly moving into CNN territory with breaking news on the spot happening right now on the scene first with live pictures interviewing witnesses from the situation room !!! With no doubt statements like "I don' t want to speculate" but then they speculate for hours on end and then have to back peddle when they discover the truth. ;D

And you'd prefer the "Fair and Ballanced" Fox News?

[Political Incorrectness]

Graham, do you mean "FIXED" News? It must be a "big buisness" story on their new Buisness Channel

[Scott]

admin said:

Sounds like a bad Friday. Just heard on the news that a large section of Surrey (King George Station area) has been closed because of a gas leak that has injured several and may have killed some.

Turns out there may not have been a gas leak at all. Just a mass murder - 6 people found in a Surrey apartment.

www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2007/10/19/bc-homcide.html

[Northern Exploration]

Fox news is way up the dial on our digital cable here so I have never even watched it. So since I don't watch I don't comment.

[Hardy]

I too was not impressed by the LIVE coverage given the crash. Tuned away to other channels, had dinner, came back and as stated, they had the same Dr on CTV stating the same non-important details. Both major news stations (Global and CTV) did manage to get some current pilots on for some actual plane related information, but most of what any of the talking heads was saying yesterday was hollow speculation at best. How many witnesses does it take to say "it just flew into the building, there was no fire" ? I understand the nature of the beast of live television news, but getting bonehead account after bonehead account of virtually nothing at all for the simple fact of having a different warm body "on the air live" is not news reporting. May as well fire up the Speakers Corner booth!

Ending my rant, sure, have live crews, do some interviews, but unless someone has something new and relevant, do the interviews tape delay and edit out the most boring of the boring. Splice in some graphics (not the over used google earth zooming map either!) and some technical info on the relevant stuff -- in this case, more than a stock airframe shot of the plane involved .... seats how many? Manufactured where? Show us the webimage from the spec sheet off the internet for gosh sakes ... oh well.

[Retrovision]

hardy said:

Both major news stations (Global and CTV)

Did I miss something, has our "new" Conservative government shut down our national broadcaster and news source? With their national network of local television stations to their cable news channel Newsworld to their Canadian-first radio network of both french and english both news and culture based stations, let alone their public ownership, I'm shocked that anyone would not count this formidable voice of reason when compared to the sensationalistic "[Only 2] major news stations" among the group. Use it or lose it; I have no time for the battering of others when the only semblence of a voice of reason among them is not counted. By all means, tell it like it is, I can only agree with your analysis of the sensationalistic direction the maket is taking, but when you omit out national broadcaster, news and otherwise, you are not only insulting every proud Canadian, but more to the point you are not making a sound argument.

That's my rant for the evening. ;D

[Low Light Mike]

re CBC: I listened to an interview with the Richmond building's doctor (maybe the same doctor that was on TV?), on CBC-One, on my drive home from work.

CBC 1 & 2: my two favourite radio stations.

.....I don't regularly listen to commercial radio stations anymore. And when I do tune into CKNW on occasion, I find that the commercial breaks are distracting.

Public, and loving it....

So the relevance of my post is to say that CBC radio-1 in Vancouver covered the "breaking news" too, with a live interview with that doctor.

[Retrovision]

flugelhorn said:

re CBC: I listened to an interview with the Richmond building's doctor (maybe the same doctor that was on TV?), on CBC-One, on my drive home from work.

CBC 1 & 2: my two favourite radio stations.

.....I don't regularly listen to commercial radio stations anymore. And when I do tune into CKNW on occasion, I find that the commercial breaks are distracting.

Public, and loving it....

So the relevance of my post is to say that CBC radio-1 in Vancouver covered the "breaking news" too, with a live interview with that doctor.

I think it was the same doctor, especially if he had a UK accent. I would have been listening to CBC Radio One if I hadn't been at home and would have been watching CBC before 6pm if they had broken into programming, but I digress. One thing to add to my earlier comments about the rabid pack of dogs that were the reporters pouncing on the good doctor for an interview after CTV was finished is that even though this was CTV's interview, Global's news story featured the same interview as their account of a witness at the scene in their report thanks to some creative editing omitting the CTV reporter's words and from a different angle - regular practice, sure, but telling still.