The fact is a lot criticisms of the modern media stick in many regards. Never was this better illustrated than during the Price of Freedom’s Lake Travis American Veterans Traveling Tribute held this past week at Lake Travis High School’s Cavalier Stadium.

It wasn’t for lack of planning — the event was coordinated with the efficiency of a military operation. It wasn’t for lack of substance — educating thousands of school children about the armed conflicts Americans have endured in the quest of freedom hits all the right marks. And it wasn’t for a lack of asking — multiple people repeatedly begged and pleaded with local media outlets for coverage.
But in the end, almost every media outlet failed to show — and more importantly — they didn’t help promote the volunteer event in advance. No one, with the sole exception of myself, even showed up to the pre-event press conference. The lack of coverage had a direct impact on attendance. That’s a shame on a variety of fronts — especially for the spectacular closing ceremony that came complete with a concert and a terrific fireworks display. It was all free to the public.
The indifference of the media was frustrating for everyone involved, but particularly for myself since it is my profession.
I spent most of the night after the closing ceremonies unable to sleep, racked with questions as to why we could not get area media outlets to budge where this event was concerned.
It is certainly true that bad news sells — it always has and always will. Good news is largely ignored, and that does, in my opinion, have an impact on the overall assessment of the national pulse. People focus — even obsess — on the downside — often when things may not be as bad as they seem.
I know from personal experience that there are never enough horses to run the race. Newsrooms are always just barely getting their product ready for airtime or publication deadlines. It is a frenetic lifestyle, to be sure.
And numbers matter to today’s media. The media is fixated on ratings and such. Small towns and communities often have huge issues getting the big boys to come cover events that are important — even when the story has can have a serious impact.
I spent five years with a Hays County publication nestled on a beautiful and pristine stretch Blanco River. Back in 2001 when a private sewage provider wanted to dump a million gallons of minimally-treated effluent into the Blanco River on a daily basis, I could not, for the life of me, get any attention from bigger media — and I tried desperately to get them involved. It was clear to me that a bigger media outlet would draw more public scrutiny to the story. From my perspective, it was a regional story. Try as I may, I just could not get larger outlets to even inquire about the story. Alas, my memory is littered with similar attempts to get coverage with little to no success.
With that said, in recent years many larger media outlets were coming to grips with this disconnect, but then the economy turned south. And as most folks know, this recession spared no one — the media included. I saw many gifted and dedicated colleagues lose their jobs over the last year — some in television and/or radio, and others in the print industry.
I also would submit in the strongest terms possible — as a parent of a couple of veterans — the nation has largely blocked out our involvement in the two wars. I think the media is directly responsible for this situation and has grossly under-reported the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. I would think the wars would lead the news every night, but virtually never does. It’s Vietnam in reverse, if you follow me. Instead of the nightly “body count,” so rightly criticized from that era, a virtual ignorance has permeates the coverage — or lack thereof.
The dearth of coverage has a direct relation to the staff cuts that have been coming to newsrooms everywhere for the last 20 years or so. Media outlets everywhere have also shut down a host of foreign bureaus.
Certainly there is also a complacency in our society that we all need to admit exists — which was the primary reason for bringing American Veterans Traveling Tribute here in the first place.
Generally speaking, there also seems to be a “blind spot” where our veterans are concerned among the media. Our veterans deserve thanks, recognition and encouragement — but all too often endure ignorance, ridicule and even scorn — especially at the hands of the press. Issues like what happened with AVTT is a perfect example of where the mass media has its greatest “disconnect” with the average person.
At the end of the day, there was no rationalizing the fact that this particular event in our backyard deserved better. More than 180 local residents volunteered their time to make this happen. More than 3,700 school children were educated about the wars that have been fought to preserve freedom. That’s a story from my perspective and it strikes me as insensitive that it was so universally ignored by the many media outlets that were contacted.
It is for this very reason why community newspapers like the Lake Travis View are here. I, for one, have missed the mark too often to be too critical — it is the proverbial “spec of dust” in my own eye that tempers me.
With all that said, the event’s ultimate impact will be huge. If all the American Veterans Traveling Tribute accomplished was educate all these children, that fact alone makes it deeply meaningful. Hats off to all who stepped up to the plate — especially Mike Boston, the Lake Travis Independent School District and the Lakeway Civic Corporation. Their efforts were amazing.
Know this: The seeds that counted most have been planted. They will germinate and come to fruition in the fullness of time…