Balloon Boy

I did not follow the story as it was breaking, but eventually there was no story on the news but the helium balloon. Eventually the family, including the missing boy, was interviewed on CNN by Wolf Blitzer. Now I used to think he was a fairly good reporter when he was a Whitehouse correspondent, but he really has lost a lot of credibility with me in the last few years. I think he is a lousy interviewer.

That being said, the Father was trying to explain how the helium balloon came to be and how it slipped its tether. He said he was trying to invent a vehicle that would hover over the streets and use less gas. In his own words, "I thought Falcon (the son) was beside me as I went over to turn on the electricity. The million volts charge the vehicle to help guide it."

Now, family projects are a good thing. And helping transportation become more green is also good. But a million volts of electricity in the back yard with kids running around, sounds a little stupid. Sounds like this was an accident of some kind waiting to happen.

Eventually Wolf runs out of any questions to ask except the obvious, "Are you out of your F---in' mind?" Wolf then plays the tape of the moment he announced the boy had been found safe, hidden in the garage and not trapped in the run away balloon. You know you have abandoned an interview when you cut away from the actual news makers to play a tape of yourself reporting on the event.

Nothing better than to use millions of dollars in broadcast time to follow a helium balloon around Colorado. For a lot fewer dollars they could have looked in the garage to help find the kid. It would seem we have too many new stations, too few actual reporters and no one around to check the facts. Here is the topper. When the boy was asked the reason he hid for so long in the garage he replied. "I did it for the television camera." I question whether there is anything that really is news anymore.
As you were,
Jay