Another capsize, more bad news.

This is two tales in one.
Although it turned out (luckily) ok, it should never have happened and news people should be shot with balls of their own BS.

Why should it have never happened?
Tad Roberts can likely fill us in on the boat, but..

It's 0200 and though a near full moon, probably not great visibility.

We have an 8 knot (my guess) boat travelling in an area of narrow passages with converging currents. At 0200 on Oct 28, it would have been at, or near, full flood where the current can and often does, run to 8 knots. He would have been going with the flood.

You decide.

Why do I say bad news?
When a story like this is done after the fact, they rely on file footage and just make it up as they go along to create a sexy story.

I can see a couple of newsies, sitting in some studio in Vancouver. They're looking at a "map" where they see "Desolation Sound" (yeah, that's a name well known and familiar to viewers) and "Hole in the Wall" (oooooh, scary). This gives them something that helps ratings and makes advertisers happy.

So, if the vessel was travelling "between Sonora and Stuart Island," which makes sense, it is about 25 NM from Desolation Sound. If it is headed "to Vancouver," which again makes sense, it is nowhere near Hole in the Wall, much less "in Hole in the Wall Channel." If he floated past the "luxury resort" shown, that would have been Sonora Lodge which, like I said is not in Hole in the Wall or near Desolation Sound. Bad news.

The boat:
http://blog.tadroberts.ca/2013/03/the-oliver-clark-ii/

The News
Floating gas cans helped BC man survive whirlpools, night overboard


The news link is slow and if it doesn't work try this
https://www.google.ca/search?site=&....4.0....0...1c.1.64.hp..1.3.354.0.2NPStlq-VTs


The real deal
https://youtu.be/MT6QhJ5RPiw

The above, my friends, is why I rarely watch the news and when I do, I don't believe a G D word they say. This is what feeds cesspools like Facebook and makes everyone an expert. This is why, when it comes to the El Faro's, the Leviathan's, the Russian planes and aunt Jemima's underwear we should all just cool the rhetoric and speculation.
----There! Consider yourselves lectured.

The BCTV news link isn't working...at least for me it isn't.


Jim
Sent from my iPad using Trawler Forum

Alex Thomson capsized Hugo Boss yesterday as well.

I used to know nothing about anything. Then, about 34 years ago, I learned a trade. (I fly airplanes, big ones). Judging by the way the media reports on my industry I can reasonably infer that EVERYTHING you see on the news and read in print is 80% garbage, and I'm trying to be nice.

Bad video link...

Funny it worked fine for me on my iPad.

Tim I consider that a bit extreme but I've been extreme on TF myself.

That's akin to putting one's head in the sand or closing your eyes. I question most everything and that's probably one of the reasons I've survived about 8 years here on TF. I'm curious like the cat but like picking things apart and not taking things at face value.

It is shocking when the media goes that far into lala land but the temptation must be great. Look at all the gullible people out there. Not one is here on TF of course. But w most media it exists to sell advertising .. not to inform people. Look at our recient political debate and notice the moderators questions were carefully designed to promote action .. as in raised voices and insults. Indeed more than one question was a terrible insult in itself.

Think of what it would be like w no media. What would we know? Almost nothing. That's a clue of how much control they have on our minds and beliefs and attitudes. But IMO the only defense is to think as rationally and objectively as possible to be as well informed as I can. If you took the media away for six months .. came back and presented the standard media news you'd likely shout "how absurd .. can't be true".

None of the news stories are to be believed. Third-hand dock gossip is not much better. I was just told a completely different story about this event.

The man in the water was the deckhand on the boat. The boat did not capsize but did heel over in a whirlpool in the middle of the night. The deckhand fell overboard and did grab those gas cans. I was told Seymour Narrows but it could easily have been the Yuculta rapids. There was some problem with control after the heeling event and the boat hit the beach or a rock. It was towed to Campbell River. I was told the deckhand was picked up by a rescue helicopter, in the news video he says some locals in a boat picked him up.....

For a while any marine problem will become a "capsize disaster"

Tad Roberts said:

None of the news stories are to be believed. Third-hand dock gossip is not much better. I was just told a completely different story about this event.

The man in the water was the deckhand on the boat. The boat did not capsize but did heel over in a whirlpool in the middle of the night. The deckhand fell overboard and did grab those gas cans. I was told Seymour Narrows but it could easily have been the Yuculta rapids. There was some problem with control after the heeling event and the boat hit the beach or a rock. It was towed to Campbell River. I was told the deckhand was picked up by a rescue helicopter, in the news video he says some locals in a boat picked him up.....

For a while any marine problem will become a "capsize disaster"

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Tad, what you "heard" certainly makes more sense than the news footage, which was all over the map, literally. They mentioned Campbell River, Desolation Sound, Hole in the Wall and showed Sonora. Can't believe much of it. Even the first hand account of the man overboard was puzzling, if not questionable.

Why was he going at 2 am, alone in a dangerous passage? Can't wait for the final report on this one.

manyboats said:

Think of what it would be like w no media. What would we know? Almost nothing. That's a clue of how much control they have on our minds and beliefs and attitudes. But IMO the only defense is to think as rationally and objectively as possible to be as well informed as I can. If you took the media away for six months .. came back and presented the standard media news you'd likely shout "how absurd .. can't be true".

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(Eric, the following is not directed at you; just some musings on the most misunderstood profession on the planet.)

People talk about "the media" like it's a monolithic system that conspires to misdirect us and that "news" comes to us from some pristine source, like clay tablets, that any one of us would recognize instantly as "the truth." Neither is accurate.

"The media" is made up of individual human beings with every possible shade of ability, competence, integrity and objectivity. Some are great at what they do and some are disasters. Some are extremely gifted at reporting "the news" but we don't like the message--so we discount it and blame "the media" for telling us things we don't want to hear. Sadly, TV reporters are often the least competent because they tend to hire young, inexperienced beautiful people as "reporters" and tend to be more focused on packaging than content. But certainly not always.

"News" should not be confused with "truth." "News" is made up of stories and accounts created by people who are actually in the business of gathering and presenting news. It is not a social service or absolute reality or a burning bush; it's a BUSINESS and people are in it to make a living while providing an essential service to which they are more or less committed. To attract an audience, the stories need to be both informative and attention-getting. There is no excuse for getting the facts of a story wrong, but the weight that one reporter gives to a fact or set of facts will vary just as <spoiler alert> facts receive different emphasis by various posters on the Trawler Forum. Try and write a story sometime that is balanced, fair, factual, on-deadline and that satisfies the entire reading or viewing public. My guess is that people will accuse you of missing facts, being in the pockets of big business or being a pinko.

I've worked in or with the news media for 45 years and I know reporters who would rather lose a limb than get the facts wrong. They are dedicated, professional news gatherers and perform an indispensable service to society. I've also known reporters who are just so lazy, vain or ambitious they don't let facts get in their way. One of the worst things, IMHO, to happen to the media is the 24-hour news cycle, that compels media outlets to publish "news" that no one 20 years ago would have spent 10 seconds reading.

If I don't like the superficiality or accuracy of a news outlet, I go elsewhere, but I try not to change just because I don't agree with the story that I'm reading. That, to me, is the definition of putting my head in the sand. Finally, if anyone thinks we'd be better off without a free and unfettered media, spend some time where it's state-controlled. It's the first thing that tyrants take over and suppress.

Well put, Angus99.

jwnall said:

Well put, Angus99.

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The 24 hours news cycle was bad enough, but social media has really ramped up the pressure to get a story out as fast as possible to an even higher degree.

A very few people will read or watch a news story, then do a bit of follow up research of their own or check out the story from several sources. Back in the day, my parents used to get newspapers and news magazines from around the world because they didn't want to get their information on world events solely from a North American perspective.

These days the evolution of news has given us reports on TV as events are occurring, either from the scene, or from a reporter (usually standing outside) at the nearest location to the event. The goal is to hook the viewer into that station, to make the viewer feel that if they went to another channel they would miss some important new development.

Problem is, TV is the same medium conquered by the likes of Aaron Spelling's Three's Company and The Love Boat, where he who slakes the thirst of the lowest common denominator wins the numbers game.

Best to wait and form a strong opinion about a story once it has had time to settle out...having said that...prognosticating early on in a story can be fun for viewers, it's just something reporters shouldn't do.

I liked Three's Company.

MurrayM said:

The 24 hours news cycle was bad enough, but social media has really ramped up the pressure to get a story out as fast as possible to an even higher degree.

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Agree, Murray. Social media and the availability of free "news" on the internet are two of the biggest pressures quality journalism faces. A lot of great newspapers and broadcast newsrooms have gone under because they can't find the magic bullet to make news gathering pay when someone's giving it away--or because people are saturated with information. Social media, 24-hour news channels and bloggers all have their pluses and minuses. The biggest minus, to me, is that the more we rely for information on "140 characters," "news readers" and "news aggregators" vs. experienced journalists, the more the profession of news gathering and reporting will waste away. When that happens we can all welcome back 1984.

Based on history...the news only has itself to blame.

Sorry but after a lifetime of relaying I found to the reporters and seeing e enough the most simple, handouts incorrectly transcripted....well it is easy to distrust people who try to relate factually to something they have no background in and fumble to connect dots they cant.

People complain about weather forecasts..heck they get it right more than the reporters who are there AFTER the deed is done...at least the weather guys are right 50/50 looking into the future.

psneeld said:

Based on history...the news only has itself to blame.

Sorry but after a lifetime of relaying I found to the reporters and seeing e enough the most simple, handouts incorrectly transcripted....well it is easy to distrust people who try to relate factually to something they have no background in and fumble to connect dots they cant.

People complain about weather forecasts..heck they get it right more than the reporters who are there AFTER the deed is done...at least the weather guys are right 50/50 looking into the future.

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Have to agree. Having been involved in various incidents over the years, and seeing the news reports, I often wondered if the reporters were talking about the same situation.

It does make one wonder how accurate our view of history is.

alormaria said:

I liked Three's Company.

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Well...Mrs Roper was some kinda hottie who single handedly put the Hubba-Hubba back into Moo-Moo's, I'll give you that!

psneeld said:

Based on history...the news only has itself to blame.

Sorry but after a lifetime of relaying I found to the reporters and seeing e enough the most simple, handouts incorrectly transcripted....well it is easy to distrust people who try to relate factually to something they have no background in and fumble to connect dots they cant.

People complain about weather forecasts..heck they get it right more than the reporters who are there AFTER the deed is done...at least the weather guys are right 50/50 looking into the future.

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Well, we've led very different lives.

It would be great if the media worked as simplistically as many think they do. What I have found in a lifetime of working with the media is that accuracy often depends on how effective the people are who work directly with reporters. Stonewall them, feed them a lot of pablum or expect them to take everything they tell you at face value and you're likely to be very disappointed with the outcome.

As I said, the quality of reporting varies and is deteriorating in many places for the reasons I noted. Your experience may have been with lightweights or newcomers or maybe just some inept reporters. But tarring the entire media with one brush based on your limited experience is unfair.

Keep in mind that reporters are not there most of the time when news happens. They're reconstructing events based on accounts given to them by multiple sources. They are usually not eyewitnesses and don't have the luxury, as you often insist on, of waiting until all the facts are in to write a story or render an opinion. Their job is to gather the news--both facts and context--and report it immediately -- or they lose their job. They also cannot accept "official" versions as the only version of what happened. There is always more than one side to a story and their job is to get them all and keep them in balance.

Try this: get 3 buddies in a room and watch a movie--any movie. Tell them their livelihood and careers depend on them writing a story about what they just saw, capturing all of the key points, times, dates, places and events. It must be accurate, well-written, grab the readers' attention, include all major points of view -- oh and they have one hour to get it done before it will be broadcast to the world. I doubt you'd find two stories that read the same.

It's easy to bitch about how reporters get it wrong, but most of the people that savage the media would curl up in the fetal position under that kind of pressure.

Can't say the media is good bad or indifferent today vs 50 years ago but where we get our news is a very different place. Today's media seems largely focused on opinions rather than facts. Opinions via Twitter, Facebook, Drudge or Rolling Stone are the "real news" with dailys such as FT or LATimes relegated to the dust bin.

Look no further than how the mainstream had Peyton Manning dead and buried, then they played the game yesterday. Or Tesla is the car of the future and now they are fighting for financial survival if one believes Bob Lutz. Or manipulating global warming data is not the story, global warming is. I could go on and on.

Where is Walter Cronkite when we need him. Certainly not hidden in the likes of Brian Williams or Dan Rather. Good luck Angus in trying to stand up for the good ones, who are they?

MurrayM said:

Well...Mrs Roper was some kinda hottie who single handedly put the Hubba-Hubba back into Moo-Moo's, I'll give you that!

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There was another woman on the show besides Chrissy?

sunchaser said:

Where is Walter Cronkite when we need him. Certainly not hidden in the likes of Brian Williams or Dan Rather. Good luck Angus in trying to stand up for the good ones, who are they?

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Mostly the ones nobody ever hears of because they aren't interested in being household names--just in doing their jobs well. There's a tendency to confuse "the media" with the purveyors of infotainment . . . high-profile anchormen/women or idiotic, loud-mouthed TV reporters . . . and overlook the fact that the vast majority of actual news professionals work in obscurity and aren't seeking to become the news. It's like assuming every person in business is a Donald Trump.

I think the media has definitely changed over the years and attribute that to the competitiveness of their marketplace. In US television news reporting, there was one moment that really impacted the industry. In 1986 Fox was launched. In the mid 90's, Fox became an owner of TV stations. Amazingly, at that time, there was not believed to be any space for a 4th network. Local news was ingrained, with many of the newscasters long time staples in the markets. So, you got a new style of reporting. Sensationalism. Rush to be first. Scoops. You got the start of a combination of News and Entertainment and the blurring of the lines. Amazing inroads were made quickly by the upstart news broadcasts. The other stations gradually followed.

I remember as a kid the part that bothered me most. The rush to the scene of the wreck, the showing of the cars, sometimes before relatives even knew. If you tell me two cars hit head on both going 60 mph, I don't honestly need to see pictures to grasp how bad that is. Apparently many do though. And my absolutely pet peeve today is sticking microphones in front of someone who has just suffered a huge loss. They would cut off live tv quickly when I told them what they could do with the microphone and their question. Someone just lost their family member and you ask them how they're feeling about it? How the h... do you think they feel?

You do have a bit of another change recently. TMZ, Deadspin, Entertainment Tonight. Some call it National Enquirer comes to TV, but I think that's an injustice. With all the dazzle and promotion and Hollywood spectacular nature, they are also coming up with stories other sources aren't. We are learning more. Are we better off for it? That's definitely debatable.

Regarding news, I read an article in the Miami Herald perhaps twenty years ago that deeply affects the way I perceive "news" ... It's here:

http://janice142.com/JoyPage/90thoughts.jpg

Written by a lady on turning 90 years old, well, read it for yourself if you wish.

I'm right there with BandB regarding shoving a microphone in someone's face at times of tragedy. How do you feel?!? Watching someone else's pain does not leave me with a good feeling.

That said, the Blood & Guts news broadcasts do have an appeal to some. I wonder if the insensitivity are a direct result of those who watch broadcast media on a regular basis? I don't -- indeed got rid of the television in 1993 so yes, I am a dinosaur.

Still, when I watch "entertainment" I am appalled. How can any of those course shows be hits? Has the world plummeted so far from the one I enjoy via old movies such as Roman Holiday and others from yesteryear?

Okay, I'm in my own world afloat. It is a good world and I love it. Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, Ice Age, Pollyanna, Swiss Family Robinson, Holiday Inn and others (Firefly and Serenity, Star Trek Voyager and When Worlds Collide) well, I like that sort of thing. And even Captain Ron once in a while.

News generally is not news. A car crash is not news to anyone except the victims.

Stepping off my soap box. Caress, in case you're curious... (Have to smell good, don't 'cha know?!?)

I know the thread is a lot about the media, but I am more puzzled about the event itself.

I saw on some reports that it was the Yuculta rapids, and given the notes about Sonora and Stuart Islands that makes sense. I also saw a report that they hit a rock off Jimmy Judd Island, which ties in (you can see how easy it would be to be swept onto the rock in Gillard Passage).

Now the big question is what on earth they were doing running the rapids on a big flood. It looks like it would have been about an 8 knot flood. I learned that is not a sensible thing to try day or night! Small wonder they might have been swept onto the rock off Jimmy Judd.

Very lucky and great news it turned out ok.

I saw a report many years ago that said most people watch the News to see how bad other people's lives are. Sort of "I'm glad I'm not that guy..."

Debra watches the news to see how often Orlando / Florida is in the news, since it seems that Orlando has to be on CNN / HLN every day, doing something stupid! If it isn't missing kids, murder or sinkholes, it's something else.

Disney: A human trap run by a mouse.

Stu