America 1982-Chapter 387 - 43: A Resounding Slap
Ensuring that three satellite channels could be received by television sets worldwide, hundreds of foreign correspondents, and as many as five hundred headquarters staff based in Washington.
Although none of this came out of Wolfe Tuck’s own pocket, as the CEO of VOX News network, he still couldn’t help but feel nervous. It meant that each day VOX was on air, it burnt through more money than an average person could earn in a lifetime.
Indeed, Tommy’s limited news network was called VOX, and in Tommy’s words, the "V" stood for Wolfe Tuck. VOX was the wolf, FOX was the fox, signifying that one day their American Gray Wolf would swallow up the fox that was FOX.
Big talk, quick to prepare, but the actual performance of VOX after it started broadcasting was very poor. Today is January 4, 1989, and VOX News Channel has been broadcasting globally for a month, yet it only has a dismal 1.6 million subscribers. Not only were the numbers dismal; the reputation was a mess too.
Not just in America, news media around the world were mocking Tommy’s costly VOX News network, all sneering at the unprofessionalism of American journalists in stark contrast to the professionalism of the United States Military.
The reason for such blatant mockery was simple: despite VOX News network’s high investment and numerous foreign correspondents, many of its journalists were seen by peers as seriously lacking professional standards. The style of news broadcasting was even more monotonous, always cutting to foreign correspondents in studios, delivering what VOX thought was newsworthy from around the world.
But much of the news was incredibly dull, such as interviews with US troops stationed abroad or the United States Navy on shipboard life, and opinions of Americans on Bush’s election as president. In short, there was no news worth everyone’s time to watch seriously.
Foreigners don’t care how American soldiers live on ships, nor do they care about how the average American perceives the President of the United States.
"Tommy, do you really think it’s right to air all those fast-food style news every day without any substantial content preparation? Are you sure we shouldn’t consider a star-based news system?" Wolfe Tuck had lost count of how many times he had suggested to Tommy the creation of a few programs leaning towards a star-based news system.
The so-called star-based news system did not involve inviting entertainment stars to be news guests. In fact, the stars referred to the newscasters of major American television networks, who took a distinctive angle when reporting and provided in-depth commentary, consistently attracting a group of viewers who liked their style of news presentation.
Wolfe suggested that Tommy cut some of the seemingly unprofessional foreign correspondents and allocate funds to hire two or three well-known news anchors from within America. This could at least ensure a significant increase in VOX subscribers and temporarily silence those in the news industry who were constantly ridiculing VOX.
By now VOX had become the laughing stock of the American television industry. FOX Television Network even specially created a segment in their program called "VOX’s Daily Comedy News Record" dedicated to capturing the blunders of those young VOX journalists working hard overseas.
Wolfe knew that the ratings for that segment were even higher than the entire VOX channel.
"If they don’t ask for millions of dollars in annual salary and can accept the same amount of salary as our current anchors, of course, I would welcome them to join," Wolfe remembered Tommy’s response being the same each time.
In the control room, Wolfe stared at the host in the studio hall who was linking up with a Los Angeles reporter to cover the Los Angeles Rams’ charity event and rubbed his brow; the host had just made an obvious slip of the tongue, mispronouncing a word, meaning his news channel had successfully provided new material for FOX’s mocking program, yet again.
"Wolfe! Look at the screen! Listen to the news!" A director with headphones suddenly took them off, his fingers swiftly moving across the buttons on the console, then the screen in front of him immediately switched.
Although Wolfe thought the director was making a fuss over nothing, he still picked up the headphones and fixed his gaze on the screen.
On the screen was a male reporter, no more than twenty-five or twenty-six years old, shouting at the camera from the deck of an aircraft carrier:
"This is the Gulf of Sidra in the Mediterranean! My current location is on the Kennedy, a United States Navy aircraft carrier in transit. Our VOX reporter group was originally following the carrier for a special report on the lives of American military personnel at sea, but now a sudden situation has arisen! Just now, I saw the young men around me getting ready for combat! It seems that two Libyan-made fighter jets are intercepting our early warning aircraft ahead! At this moment, the carrier’s fighters are preparing to take off..."
"Cut the sports news! Plug into the studio hall! Now!" Wolfe’s eyes lit up, and he immediately commanded.
The director quickly used the microphone to inform the host, who was still discussing football with the reporter, to get ready for the interjection. There was a five-second countdown, and in the gap of the countdown, the host, with the aid of the teleprompter, quickly briefed the potential audience in front of the TVs on the situation:
"During the USS Kennedy’s routine patrol, Libyan fighter jets attempted to intercept the aircraft carrier’s airborne electronic surveillance aircraft. Now, the carrier’s fighter jets have taken off to engage!"
As the countdown ended, the screen suddenly shifted, and the VOX news channel broadcast live footage from aboard the aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean.
On January 4, 1989, at 10:02 AM, the VOX News Network broadcast the fastest global news with an on-the-scene perspective, sending shockwaves around the world:
Two F-14 Tomcats from the United States Navy aircraft carrier USS Kennedy entered Libyan-claimed airspace and, in an eight-minute engagement, successfully shot down two Libyan MiG-23 fighter jets that were attempting to intercept the Kennedy’s airborne electronic surveillance aircraft! The United States Navy suffered no casualties, and the two Libyan pilots ejected before their aircraft were hit by missiles. Currently, the USS Kennedy is continuing its voyage along its predetermined route.
Although the VOX reporters on a carrier nearly a hundred nautical miles away couldn’t capture footage of the air combat, they clearly filmed the F-14s and the electronic surveillance aircraft taking off and landing!
Even the footage of the pilots exiting their aircraft and saluting their superiors as they gave their reports was captured, and broadcast to the entire world through their channel immediately.
While the director was frantically preparing topics on the prompter for the host to ask questions to reporters, Wolfe’s eyes were fixated on the television screens in front of him, switching the footage to other cable networks around the world. It was proven that after VOX had broadcast the news for five minutes, not a single other news television network had reported it!
It wasn’t until the seventh minute that the director received a message that the Associated Press had sent out a brief text report: Two aircraft from the USS Kennedy engaged with two Libyan fighter jets in the Mediterranean, with no casualties on the United States side.
Meanwhile, on VOX’s television screen, their own reporter was on the carrier, providing more detailed updates and had even given the exact position where the engagement took place!
Only at that moment did Wolfe truly appreciate Tommy’s decision, and he understood why Tommy had spared no expense and pulled strings, under the pretext of documenting the service lives of soldiers, to dispatch their reporters to various large overseas military bases and naval vessels!
Those reporters usually just promoted the United States Military’s good virtues, making American soldiers look like saints in order to win favor, all to be the first to record events when war broke out!
Although the methods were a bit foolish and relied on some luck, looking at it now, this news alone was worth the price of admission!
"Tommy?" Wolfe snapped back to reality and quickly walked back to his office, dialing Tommy’s number: "Tommy! Turn on the TV! We’ve got the first major global breaking news exclusive!"
When Wolfe called, Tommy was at home baking with Ottelia, as she was about to leave for a few days to attend a charity event in New York. Today was her last day in Los Angeles, and Tommy had made a point to free up his time to spend with her.
Hearing Wolfe’s excited and agitated voice, Tommy’s response was very calm, "Have the host and reporter stall for time. Remember the number I’m about to give you. The person’s name is Charles Salmon, a former classmate of mine, who’s currently a graduate student at Yale and also works part-time at a think tank. Tell them my name and that we need a guest for a live commentary. He’ll arrange for someone sufficiently professional to comment on the news. I’ve already discussed this with him; those mentors of his who work at the think tank need to boost their international profile through VOX, and we need the world to see VOX’s professional commentary."
Having said that, Tommy hung up the phone. Ottelia looked at Tommy: "What’s happened?"
"Nothing much, I just think... VOX has given the global news industry a resounding slap in the face," shrugged Tommy:
"They will see that VOX will break another record: the fastest-growing number of subscribers worldwide, in addition to its previous record for the lowest subscriber base."
"Do you need to get back to work?" Ottelia, wearing baking gloves, prepared to take out her meticulously made treats from the oven and asked Tommy while putting on her gloves.
Tommy smiled and walked over, putting the gloves on his own hands, then carefully opened the oven: "No, not today, being with you is always the most important thing."
