TV News: Man on the Street interviews are scary- people can not communicate!! (Brown, high school)

[Dingler]

I can not believe the people on TV who are interviewed for NEWS Stories. When the attractive articulate TV Journalists interview the Man on the Street, it is such a shock. The average person is so sad. They seem like they have no ability to get their ideas across. Many people speak in hushed mumbles, like they have marbles in their mouth. Another thing I notice is the large number of people who say "you know" 50 times a minute. Other people are always saying: umm, yaaa, like, I dont know, and ahhh.

What is wrong with America when so few people can put a sentence together?

[RedNC]

Originally Posted by Dingler

I can not believe the people on TV who are interviewed for NEWS Stories. When the attractive articulate TV Journalists interview the Man on the Street, it is such a shock. The average person is so sad. They seem like they have no ability to get their ideas across. Many people speak in hushed mumbles, like they have marbles in their mouth. Another thing I notice is the large number of people who say "you know" 50 times a minute. Other people are always saying: umm, yaaa, like, I dont know, and ahhh.

What is wrong with America when so few people can put a sentence together?

I always get a kick out of the “Jaywalking” interviews on the Tonight Show. He always finds a “college” student that has no clue about anything. Some how these “students” graduated HS and were accepted to a college and they have no clue.

[JBrown]

Nothing new here...just the screen exposing it more..

You can thank our gov. run schools and the teachers unions for all this..
The overall dumbing down of America makes the "on the street" citizen of today look and sound like a moron compared to a home schooled kid of the 1900's.

Remember the Ken Burn's Civil War series....? IMHO one of the most reveiling parts of that was the letters to home; from BOTH SIDES of the conflict.

Articulate,introspective, well spoken letters to loved ones at home from the common foot soilder in the trenches....

Compare that to the rap hip-hop inspired trash that's crawling around us today.


And yet the schools demand ever increasing funds and the drones get passed thru the system.


We are doomed...



And now for some bad news...

[TXboomerang]

I think some people just get nervous when they realize they are on TV, and also, some people may simply choose to avoid requests to appear, leaving the reporter looking for ANYONE who is willing to be interviewed.

That being said, I do think there is a huge supply of inarticulate people out there.

[spiritwalker]

While being on camera might initially cause a few "ya knows", or "and-a's"
one generally regains composure. I love the post that referred to the letters written from those fighting the Civil War. They were indeed articulate and well thought out. And from poor southern farmers to northern rail hands to school teachers all were pretty well versed in the written language. Pity that we have lost that gift today.

Communication skills are lacking because of the technology available( A blessing and a curse all at once!)and let's face it....It is easier not to speak properly.

My academic record in High School was a tad above average for the era in which I was raised. I initially went to college for two years... I Barely got by. When I dropped out in 1968 I was immediately drafted into the U.S. Army. I went back to college four years after my tour of duty. I started going part time and then full time. What I realized even then was that my skills regarding communication were far above the average college student. My professors would write comments like "How refreshing to have a student that can compose a sentence." At first I thought they were being sacrastic until a professor read me something a "Dean's List" student had written. I was schocked then as I am now. The situation has deteriorated to a new low I'm afraid. Pretty Sad.
Spiritwalker

[brattpowered]

Originally Posted by JBrown

Nothing new here...just the screen exposing it more..

You can thank our gov. run schools and the teachers unions for all this..
The overall dumbing down of America makes the "on the street" citizen of today look and sound like a moron compared to a home schooled kid of the 1900's.

Remember the Ken Burn's Civil War series....? IMHO one of the most reveiling parts of that was the letters to home; from BOTH SIDES of the conflict.

Articulate,introspective, well spoken letters to loved ones at home from the common foot soilder in the trenches....

Compare that to the rap hip-hop inspired trash that's crawling around us today.


And yet the schools demand ever increasing funds and the drones get passed thru the system.


We are doomed...



And now for some bad news...

Your post is quite "reveiling."

[Visvaldis]

Verbal and/or written communication doesn't seem as important as it was decades ago.
Personally, I have no grudge against musicians/rappers, or whatever using incorrect english in their songs, but it sure would be nice to hear them communicating properly when speaking.
I've noticed that in many small town newspapers one can also find grammar errors as well as incorrect spelling.
I also find the annoying "ya know" phrase being inserted every three seconds very distracting.
I remember one grammar rule very well, never end a sentence with a preposition. Nowadays, even professional journalists break this rule.
I guess that in schools the kids are taught how to write good!

[Hawkeye48]

Originally Posted by Dingler

I can not believe the people on TV who are interviewed for NEWS Stories. When the attractive articulate TV Journalists interview the Man on the Street, it is such a shock. The average person is so sad. They seem like they have no ability to get their ideas across. Many people speak in hushed mumbles, like they have marbles in their mouth. Another thing I notice is the large number of people who say "you know" 50 times a minute. Other people are always saying: umm, yaaa, like, I dont know, and ahhh.

What is wrong with America when so few people can put a sentence together?

I've seen it as well. But most Americans aren't used to being interviewed on TV so they may just be nervious.