For many journalists, 9/11 remains more than an important story from their careers. Instead, their memories reflect a moment when television provided Americans with their primary window into an unfolding national tragedy.
"We're all in the advertising and marketing business, in the small niche world that we live in, and we think, 'Oh yeah, use it to make a headline, use it to write copy or do a summary of something.' And yeah, they're using it for that. But it's a remarkably small percentage. And they're also not using it to any great extent right now for marketing and advertising recommendations."
This isn't a fair fight, and it never really has been. Broadcast radio and television didn't just bring a spoon to a knife fight here. It brought a feather duster to a bazooka battle.
Press secretary is a demanding job: early mornings, late nights, and a level of scrutiny that makes cable news look gentle by comparison. It also doesn't pay like cable news or national radio syndication does.
"Technology is cool. But being a human is so much cooler. People feel connection. We all understand the financial impacts of AI, but the legal aspects are starting to catch up."
If you're running a news operation and you actually want to meet consumers where they are, you need more than one lane. You need an audio strategy, a long-form video strategy, a short-form video strategy, and a written strategy.
"There's no question in my mind the market is poorer for not having a station like WCBS covering important stories in the tri-state. There are a million stories that could use in-depth reporting, and local news makes a real difference in the communities where it's served."
"I think we decided very early in our careers — decades ago — that we were going to do it our way. And if we failed, we would never wonder, 'Gosh, I wonder what would happen if we'd done it our way.'"
For many journalists, 9/11 remains more than an important story from their careers. Instead, their memories reflect a moment when television provided Americans with their primary window into an unfolding national tragedy.