So, for the record, I live a few blocks from the bombing suspects' apartment, and I work less than a block from where the MIT officer was shot. Without following timely updates, I would have had no idea of the following:
- That I was asked to help keep the streets clear
- More specifically, that I should not go to work
- Though it turned out that there was no need for a controlled detonation, if one had occurred less than a mile from my home, the news reports are the only way I'd know what it was. I could have harassed the officers, but I wasn't going to do that either way.
- Later, that it was OK to leave my home
- Still later, that the manhunt was over and my plans in Watertown this morning could proceed as normal
This is all real, actionable information for me that was reported correctly. I think on the average, I'm better off with that information, even if there was also some garbage mixed in.
Also, what would have happened if the owner of the boat hadn't been following breaking news when the stay-home request was lifted? The bombing suspect would likely have died where he was and not been found until morning. Everyone's better off for that sequence of events.
- That I was asked to help keep the streets clear
- More specifically, that I should not go to work
- Though it turned out that there was no need for a controlled detonation, if one had occurred less than a mile from my home, the news reports are the only way I'd know what it was. I could have harassed the officers, but I wasn't going to do that either way.
- Later, that it was OK to leave my home
- Still later, that the manhunt was over and my plans in Watertown this morning could proceed as normal
This is all real, actionable information for me that was reported correctly. I think on the average, I'm better off with that information, even if there was also some garbage mixed in.
Also, what would have happened if the owner of the boat hadn't been following breaking news when the stay-home request was lifted? The bombing suspect would likely have died where he was and not been found until morning. Everyone's better off for that sequence of events.