No Time To Think

"Left, right? Crushed between? You need this book. Read it." - Ray Bradbury -- Ray Bradbury "Rosenberg and Feldman deliver a caustic take on today's speed-driven news media, along with a warning to news consumers: Get smarter about the information you rely on, since there's no hope of slowing it down." - Deborah Potter, former CBS News correspondent; Executive Director, NewsLab -- Deborah Potter Howard Rosenberg and Charles Feldman capture both the serious dangers and the intense competitive pressures of today's 24 hour news cycle. The traditional policy of "getting it right" often has been replaced by the urgency of "getting it first." Today's news culture rewards those who achieve both speed and accuracy. It awards no praise for second place or reporting inaccurately. Howard and Charles witnessed firsthand the accelerating speed and the decelerating standards in two of the finest news organizations in the nation, Los Angeles Times and CNN. Their book is a very provocative read." - Tom Johnson, Former chief executive, CNN; Former CEO, Los Angeles Times -- Tom Johnson "This book deals with one of the most critical issues of our time: the ability of the news media to provide understanding and perspective of the world around us. Journalism has been defined as the "search for reportable truth." No Time to Think shines light on key reasons for abuse of analytical reporting. Speed and greed combined with the explosion of technology is exposed in this timely book by these expert, experienced, authors. They point out the half-truths, the misconstrued truths and outright lies that permeate the 24-hour news cycle. I recommend that everyone who cares about our democracy read No Time to Think, then think it over carefully." - Dr. Judith Marlane, Professor Emeritus, Cinema and Television Arts, California State University, Northridge, USA; Author of Women in Television News Revisited -- Judith Marlane "In No Time to Think, Howard Rosenberg and Charles Feldman take a refreshing pause to contemplate today's superheated media environment and the implications of 'Shoot first, think later' news. The book deftly captures this relatively new dynamic and its depressing implications for journalism and democracy -- and should be required reading for anyone who cares about either. Breezily written, it's a sobering reminder of the often-overlooked price tag associated with headlong technological advancement." - Brian Lowry, media columnist/chief TV critic, Variety -- Brian Lowry Review, The Australian. 4 February 2009. "In this, the authors really do have a point ... In short, Rosenberg and Feldman are right to say that there's a lot wrong with rolling news." - Independent on Sunday. 4 January 2009. "This books is mainly about American news reporting, but enough of it is recognisable to Britain and all of it is an awful warning, delivered with anecdotal richenss and real passion." - The Times. 3 January 2009. "Perhaps the pithiest and simplest point of the book is this one by Keithe McAllister, former head of national news gathering at CNN: ' It's absulutely true, and anybody who says otherise is talking nonsesne, that every mistake that's made in the news business is made because of speed.'" - City A.M. 8 January 2009. "this book is a useful contribution to the debate on the media." Morning Star. 26 January 2009. Discussion of book and topic, no review. Ian Sinclair, Morning Star. 17 February 2009. Discussion of topic, mention of book at the end, Camden New Journal. 5 February 2009. "This is a dangerous book because it's all true. Every one of us inside the media (and outside it, if there are any left) ought to read every word, and then question all we see, hear and say. And think. Every day, twenty-four hours a day. The book will explain why.

Howard Rosenberg earned a Pulitzer Prize and numerous other honors during his 25 years as TV critic for the Los Angeles Times. His anthology, "Not So Prime Time: Chasing the Trivial on American Television," was published in 2004, winning wide praise and a starred review from Publishers Weekly. He teaches critical writing and news ethics at the University of Southern California, USA. Charles S. Feldman's nearly 20 years as an investigative television and print journalist have straddled the crucial juncture of "old-fashioned" reporting and the introduction of the 24 hour news cycle and lend him an unique perspective to the advantages and pitfalls that this change has brought about.

Prologue; 1. Why Is Speed So Bad?; 2. Two Revolutions: French and Mexican; 3. All the News Before It Happens; 4. Blog On!; 5. A New Protestant Reformation: Citizen Journalists to the Rescue; 6. In-depth Instant Results; 7. Desperate Newspapers Play Catch-up; 8. Mr. Inside and Mr. Outside: A Conversation; 9. What If? Scenarios, Dark and Darker; 10. 5 Grams News, 10 Grams Speculation.