Amateurs, Algorithms and Local Fluff – Local News & Weather: Haystack Review

A TV journalist’s opinion | Highlights of late night talk shows are fine, but Haystack’s hard news is rehash of the already-heard and the getting-stale-fast — like Newsy, one of its sources. Both are devoid of breaking, exclusive, and investigative reports. Amateur curators are at work here, if human journalists are even involved. I see none mentioned. News is too important to be picked by algorithms incapable of real journalistic judgment. That’s how fake news spreads. Haystack’s local stories are usually fluff filler pieces from late in my hometown newscasts (when viewers are tuning out), never the most important stories. I have yet to see a top story or breaking item, but then they only carry one station’s work here – not the best news shop, but a second-rate outfit hungry for exposure. Note, too, that Haystack declines to identify the organizations presenting its alleged awards — suspiciously sketchy sourcing. Haystack is an app programmers’ news toy, not the real deal.
Review by KVB-FM on Local News & Weather: Haystack.