24 July 2010

DFO doesn’t do research: the video proof

Here is proof from CTV that the Department of Fisheries and Oceans does not do fisheries research.

It is not like this story doesn’t have a number of angles that connect it to stories that are running locally like fisheries research, custodial management and deepwater oil drilling.

And that’s without even mentioning that – as CTV teases it up – this is about one of the most important marine biological discoveries in recent years  never mind that it happened offshore Newfoundland.

Have any local news outlets covered this story at all?  Maybe they have and your humble e-scribbler just missed the reports.

But if they haven’t covered it, you kinda wonder why not.

- srbp -

9:35 AM Sunday Morning Updatecbc.ca/nl has a story on the expedition  - finally - but the focus is on Memorial University.  There is no reference to any other participants in the scientific expedition even though it included participation from the Bedford Institute of Oceanography, the Spanish Institute of Oceanography, one other unidentified Canadian university and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans

The only reference to fisheries and oceans is the photo credit for one rather drab photo of a species of coral that the cutline identifies as being already known.

Here’s an example of the other photographs that DFO released [link to Montreal Gazette photo gallery] from the expedition.

DFOhandout octopus

Bond Papers brought you more detail on July 21.

Awesomeness Update:  CBC’s online story now includes Glenn Deir’s video report (last week’s Here and Now)  right at the start, embedded in the piece instead of off to one side.  The addition includes large colour photos from DFO’s handout set

This shows a few things, not the least of which is that your humble e-scribbler needs to find a better way to keep track of what is being broadcast locally.  The most important lesson though is that CBC’s website presence can really transform its coverage using both print (the web story text) and video (Glenn’s report) to something that is stunning to watch.  A rather bland still went up first but by Sunday evening, CBC had the piece in all its colourful glory.

Awesome!