What has happened to the US TV companies in this war??

[jase]

Watching the war on Iraq, I've noticed that whilst here in the UK the vast majority of reports from the country itself come from British reporters (basically the only US reports are in special sections looking at the American point of view), when watching CNN a very high proportion of the news broadcasts, the majority on some occasions, have been from the same UK-based reporters we are getting on our programmes.

Thinking this was perhaps just an international version of CNN or something I watched a relayed edition of NBC News with that funny Tom Brokaw bloke (the one who always sounds as if he's been drinking lol). Blow me if they weren't using the same reports as well!! And unlike when companies pool reports over here, NBC weren't even bothering to hide the ITV/BBC names on the end of reports!!!

What has happened to these companies for pity's sake? I thought the USA was supposed to lead the world in media circles, yet it seems in this one area they're falling well short of what I'd expect. You guys run out of money or something?!?!?

[Boone]

There's many American journalists working overseas, but the big ones are pseudo-independent and provide reports on a contractual basis. I'm guessing NBC and the BBC will pay $X for a report, and since the BBC's cameras were right there NBC would copy them.

I'm not sure if you're watching the same American TV that I am, but rarely do NBC/CBS/ABC/FOX talk to anyone but their own. CNN has international reporters that don't work exclusively for them.

[dodecahedron]

unlike the previous Gulf war, CNN has been "expelled" from Iraq, for not being "objective enough". so they don't have their own people right there in Iraq and Baghdad.

[jase]

That would explain CNN then, that makes sense.

However, I can say that I watched the NBC Nightly News last night and 3 of the 5 reports from within Iraq were sourced from ITN ("ITV Network News" as Tom called it). I've never seen an NBC report on ITV.

[burninfool]

Saddams' regime is finished and soon all reporters will be allowed into Iraq.