When news breaks, the Newsbreakers bust it. That's the slogan on the group's Web site anyway.
The mischief-makers at www.newsbreakers.org like to pull pranks on TV news reporters doing live stand-up reports. In video on the group's Web site, viewers can see a ninja prance about behind a reporter and hurl cheese slices at her. In another clip, a faux newspaper writer ruins a live news report while criticizing local newscasts for ripping and reading stories from the morning newspaper.
Earlier this month Newsbreakers hit WPXI, but, frankly, this "bust" wasn't funny. It was seemingly an attempt to be meaningful, which is confusing because past Newsbreakers efforts appear to be just rude, obnoxious attempts to inspire laughs.
Rather than interrupt a report by Channel 11's Stu Brown on a man suspected of "tying a local woman up, slashing her throat and setting her on fire" (per anchor David Johnson), one of the Newsbreakers, identified as Ted Michaels (not his real name), instead approached Brown after the report. He asked Brown, "Why do you guys choose to cover such awful stories? I figure there's so much murder and mayhem on television already."
In the tape, posted on the Newsbreakers Web site, an understandably annoyed Brown replies, "I'm not talking to you. I've got something to do here," before rolling up the window of the WPXI news vehicle.
"The broadcaster's relentless coverage of personal tragedy and loss with little connection to any larger social context forced Michaels to scrap the bust in favor of a shower," the Newsbreakers release states.
The video clip on the group's Web site is titled "Suspect" and begins with a series of clips of Channel 11 coverage of crime stories and car accidents and concludes with a mournful song playing over an image of the sun setting on Television Hill and the words "demand better."
"It sounds funny to say, but we do maintain editorial guidelines around here," said Newsbreakers creator Chris Landon, who also goes by Buck "Lucky" Owens. "We made the decision [not to interrupt the live shot] based on the content of the story. We didn't want to be attached to that event."
Landon wouldn't say how Newsbreakers knew the location of Brown's live shot or chose the story, but he acknowledged that in some cases Newsbreakers gets inside information from TV station employees.
It's true that every TV station in town does its share of crime stories that have little impact beyond the people involved. Crime stories are easy. There's a clear-cut good guy/bad guy. Same with car crash and house fire stories.
But to hold one reporter responsible for what Newsbreakers believes are crimes against journalism isn't going to do much to fix the problem, especially when so many of their other busts appear to be sheer folly.
Landon, who said he was fired from his job as an assignment desk assistant at a cable news outlet in Rochester, N.Y., the day after the first Newsbreakers bust in January, defended its approach. He rightfully noted that TV news reporters frequently knock on the doors of would-be interview subjects and point a camera in their faces without warning.
"Our sympathies go out to him for putting him in a bad spot, but we were surprised he had nothing to offer in his defense," Landon said. "We also hope he'll go back to his newsroom, tell the story about what happened and it might cause some soul searching back at the station."
Landon described Newsbreakers as performing "guerrilla street theater" in an effort to engage the general public in a discussion "about the relevance of television news and the job TV news is doing in providing a public service." He said every bust includes a crafted message, but I suspect those messages often escape viewers at home. It was not obvious that the cheese-wielding ninja was throwing cheese, but Landon said that stunt was an attempt to draw a parallel between processed, packaged cheese and processed, packaged news.
"In any legitimate art form, there is room for interpretation," Landon said.
Landon said Newsbreakers would like to return to Pittsburgh to stage future busts. Local newsies, you've been warned.
Local TV nostalgia
If you'd rather hark back to kinder, gentler days in the TV universe, flip open the new self-published book "When We Were Kids" ($12.95, AuthorHouse) by Hank Stohl.
Stohl, who was the puppeteer for Knish on Pittsburgh TV in the 1950s, contacted children's show hosts of the era and invited them to submit descriptions of their shows for his compilation.
"I belong to a piece of history here in Pittsburgh," Stohl said. "Nobody has done anything. Why not ask the people to do it themselves?"
In addition, Stohl has provided a DVD of Knish sketches to Your Way Cafe in Whitehall's Caste Village, which plays the DVD during breakfast almost every Saturday morning.
Weather Plus debuts
WPXI's Weather Plus digital channel, a partnership with NBC and Comcast, premieres Tuesday on Comcast digital Channel 208. Viewers with TV sets capable of receiving over-the-air digital signals can tune into Weather Plus on Channel 11.2.
Channel 11 weather personnel will deliver local forecasts at the top of each hour, 15 minutes after the hour, 30 minutes past the hour and 45 minutes past the hour. NBC will provide national weather reports in between local forecasts. WPXI is in the final stages of hiring a fourth weather forecaster.
'Bundle-Up' Auction
WTAE will air its annual "Project Bundle-Up Auction" from noon to 8 p.m. tomorrow with retired meteorologist Joe DeNardo and meteorologist Stephen Cropper hosting with other Channel 4 personalities.
More than 500 items will be auctioned off to benefit the Salvation Army of Southwestern Pennsylvania's efforts to provide new, winter outerwear for needy children and senior citizens.
Reality show junk
Halfway through "I Want to Be a Hilton" (9 p.m. Tuesday, NBC) I came up with this deal: I'm not going to waste my time reviewing every network reality show anymore and you won't waste your time watching them and then maybe they'll go away. I have only so many brain cells to donate to this job and they're eroding at a much too rapid rate.
In "Hilton," Paris' mom tries to train a bunch of rubes, hicks and uncultured slobs how to act around those with wealth and class. It's all the jokes you'd expect, all the familiar reality show situations (they have to eat escargot, perform tasks, etc.).
Channel surfing
Sci Fi Channel will air reruns of the canceled Fox series "Firefly" (7 p.m. Fri- day beginning July 22), leading up to the film release of "Serenity," based on the series ... Pittsburgh native Judy Tygard has been named a senior producer for CBS's "48 Hours Mystery" ... Effective Monday, WPXI will flip its morning talk shows with "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" moving to 10 a.m. and "The Montel Williams Show" moving to 11 a.m. ...TNT's "The Closer" opened big Monday night, drawing about 7 million viewers ... CBS's "The Cut" moves to 8 p.m. Wednesday beginning July 6.
TV Q&A
This week's TV Q&A responds to questions about "Martha Stewart Living" reruns on Style, Sabrina Lloyd from "NUMB3RS" and stomach-turning reports during suppertime newscasts. You can read it online only at www.post-gazette.com/tv.
First Published: June 17, 2005, 4:00 a.m.