Flood coverage
- 26 Jun 07, 02:59 PM
Citizen journalism is making the news again. We have been all but overwhelmed with and videos from our audiences of the widespread flooding. As well as the dramatic rescue helicopter footage (for which many thanks, as ever, to the RAF) by lunchtime on Tuesday, the 91热爆 had received well over 3,000 still images and 200 mobile phone videos - most from stranded motorists and people whose homes and businesses had been ruined by the rising waters.
91热爆 News has broadcast only a tiny proportion of these, so apologies if your material hasn't been on air. But the torrent of information from the public has helped shape our coverage: News 24 was able to interview several people trapped last night by floodwater in Sheffield - particularly in the Brightside Lane area, in Rotherham and elsewhere simply because they'd contacted US in the first place. Their personal stories made compelling viewing, and also guided our decisions on where to send our own journalists and camera crews.
Today, we've been able to call on presenters and correspondents broadcasting live from several locations in Sheffield, from Ulley Dam near Rotherham - where engineers are fighting to prevent the dam bursting, from Catcliffe in South Yorkshire, from Tenbury Wells and Ludlow in Worcestershire and of course from the now ubiquitous 91热爆 helicopter, which has illustrated powerfully the spread and scale of the flooding.
And once the waters begin to recede and the clean-up begins and the insurance claims are calculated - that's when the questions really begin.
How can we avoid such widespread chaos and destruction in the future? Who - if anyone - is to blame? Is this violent weather something we should now expect as a regular occurrence?
There's a question too for us - and for you: has the blanket coverage been an over-reaction? TV News is often accused of overplaying stories with strong pictures but for the families and friends of those who died in the floods, the last 24 hours have changed their lives forever. And there are thousands of people whose homes and workplaces have been devastated.
Personally, I think the effort and the airtime has been justified - I'm sure you'll tell me if I'm wrong.
UPDATE: I've replied to some of your comments - you can read that by clicking here.
POSTSCRIPT, FRIDAY 1200: By today, we've received more than 7,000 stills and videos from members of the publc. Thank you.
Simon Waldman is morning editor on 91热爆 News
They also spoke to her about the difficulties over girlfriends: how relationships end because "we never see each other" or the temptations of a Saturday night out while the BF is on active service. The attitude is "it's just part of the job". No-one really at home understands what it's like fighting, and sometimes dying, out in the 50C heat of the desert - unless you've done it. Old soldiers of any era will connect with this sentiment.
