Why a News Update on John McCain’s Brain Injury is Now a Smoking Hot topic

What is the news? That was the thought that came to my mind while I was stuck in traffic on Monday morning. Well, now that I am safely on vacation and able to think about important things, I decided to take a look at the news and see if anything was worthy of being posted online. In this article, I will examine what the media missed when reporting about Sen. John McCain’s (R) condition and what Rep. Barney Frank (D-PA) failed to report when discussing his physical condition hours ago.

First, let’s start with the obvious. There were absolutely no reports about McCain having a stroke, despite reports that have been circulating hours ago. Furthermore, there were no reports that McCain is having neurological problems, or that he has had a seizure. It was just hours ago when staff sct and press secretary said that McCain was admitted to the hospital following a motor accident in Arizona. So, whether these reports are true or not, one thing is for certain: The news media, which seems to be largely knee-deep in political stories, failed to pick up on any new information regarding Sen. John McCain’s health issues until now.

When I looked at the television screen early in the afternoon, I noticed that there were a couple of networks playing news reports on their TVs. About an hour before, a Fox News reporter was asking McCain’s press secretary about McCain’s whereabouts and how he is doing. About three hours ago, CNN published several articles citing anonymous sources saying that McCain might be diagnosed with “pulmonary embolism.” A little less than three hours ago, the AP published a story saying that McCain’s doctor ordered a MRI, which he has reportedly done twice.

The news reports that the networks published, as I mentioned earlier, failed to pick up on any new information regarding either Senator McCain’s health or his ailments prior to this point in time. There is no doubt that the people that write and produce these news stories have a strong political stake in reporting whatever they want to report. After all, if there is significant new information regarding these two politicians, then their stock prices will go up. Therefore, what these media outlets did not tell their readers (who are likely paying for the reports) is that extensive damage was caused to McCain’s brain by his wife’s affair.

So, how could this particular news update let the cat out of the bag so to speak? Simple really. The news media, whether they like to admit or not, depend largely upon the trust of their audience. If the news media does not maintain the integrity required to ensure that the public trusts what they are reporting, then the news media will go out of business.

This is why it is important that journalists be held to higher standards. It is especially imperative when it comes to news updates that deal with the health of a candidate for elective office. This type of news story should be approached with caution, but when you approach it professionally, the results can be interesting and therefore newsworthy.