dmittedly, I am biased. Growing up in the Boston area, I was blessed with exposure to some of the greatest television news stations in the country. The Northeast has always been recognized for its media supremacy, and it is a simple fact that Boston news stations have often been acknowledged as the "cream of the crop." So throughout my life, I have been accustomed to the very best.

Then I moved to Connecticut.

Normally, the staple of my television news diet is catered to by CNN and Headline News; fast, accurate, well prioritized information. Admittedly, I often miss much of the local angle through the use of these two outlets, but I unfortunately have little choice. I find the local television news scene in Connecticut manipulated, contrived, and completely self-obsessed. In a word, it's a joke. Thursday night is a prime example of this reality.

Thursday night is my one and only legitimate night for television. With two consistently funny programs (Seinfeld and Friends) sandwiching thirty minutes of gawking at Brooke Shields (funny or not), followed by the best drama on T.V.,ER, it is the only worthwhile night of television for me.

Channel 30, the local NBC affiliate, carries these programs and broadcasts the local news immediately thereafter. Every single Thursday night, without fail, this station runs a "news story" that just happens to focus on emergency medicine. I seriously question whether these stories are actually news, or rather promotional items intended to attract ER viewers.

Two weeks ago, the plot of ER focused on the struggle of an infant to survive a car wreck. Within the plot, the rescue helicopter and an infant ICU center were both settings that the screen writer's had employed.

Following the program , Channel 30 ran two stories with strong similarities to ER's plot, one concerning the daily routine of a Connecticut LifeStar's helicopter pilot, and another detailing the activities in a local neo-natal ICU unit. The producers of Channel 30 news even went so far as to use the theme song to ER within their neo-natal story! Throughout the broadcast of ER, a total of seven commercials were telecast hyping these "stories."

I ask, are these stories truly considered news items, or are the producers of Channel 30 news shamelessly riding the coattails of one of the most successful television shows in America?

A third commercial ran three times during the ER broadcast, this time concerning the latest developments in the career of actor George Clooney, who plays a pediatrician on ER. Apparently, he has a new movie debuting next month, in which he stars opposite Michelle Pfeiffer.

Again I ask, is this story truly considered "news?" More so, is this the kind of story that should be used to promote the evening news?

But I am not through. A fourth promo ran throughout the evening, spotlighting a "self help" story concerning what female joggers should do when confronted with a potentially dangerous situation. News anchor, Joanne Nesti, re-creates a scene in which an assailant feigning an ankle injury attacks her while running in the park. A police officer then provides 35 seconds of advice on what victims should do to protect themselves. All this is done (including the promo) very dramatically in order to capture the viewer's interest.

I ask, is this a situation that occurs on a regular basis in Connecticut?

I don't think so.

Was this story relevant to any current event covered by Channel 30 during its broadcast that evening?

No.

Is 35 seconds of self defense advice really going to save a life someday?

I doubt it.

Is this a shameless, self possessed, completely fabricated news item?

Absolutely.

This news station is interested in everything but the news. On this particular evening, their lead story was a two car accident in Middletown and a one car accident in East Hartford, neither with fatalities. I ask, why lead with a story concerning something as regretfully frequent and uneventful as a car accident?

The answer: Channel 30 had live crews on the scene. "Live, Local, Late Breaking." This is the Channel 30 news slogan, and since they were unable to have crews live on the scene in Rwanda, Zaire, or Washington DC, where the real news stories were that day, they ran stories about car accidents instead. It was certainly live, local, and late breaking, but was it in fact a legitimate, first run news story?

I don't think so.

This past week, Channel 30 finally went too far. Throughout the broadcast of Friends, Seinfeld, and ER, news anchors Joanne Nesti and Gerry Brooks appeared in several commercials promoting their ten o'clock news broadcast. Not surprising, another story related to emergency medicine was hyped (this one concerning the "Kid's ER."), but they also ran a commercial that actually gave away the cliffhanger plot that had held ER fans in suspense all week.

Susan Lewis, a popular doctor played by actress, Sherry Springfield, informed her colleagues in last week's episode that she had applied for a transfer to Arizona where her family lives. Although her transfer seemed a done deal, fellow doctor and friend Mark Greene (played by actor Anthony Edwards) had decided to admit his love for her on this week's show, in hopes on convincing her to stay. Ultimately, she left for Phoenix, but not before a tear wrenching final scene in the Chicago train station.

Unfortunately, for me and many other ER fans, news anchor Gerry Brooks had given away the ending a full three hours before the show ever started, stating in several promos that viewers could find out "why actress Sherry Springfield has left ER" during the ten o'clock news.

Nice going Gerry.

Both he and Joanne Nesti were forced to apologize numerous times for the mistake (after Channel 30's switchboard was flooded by angry viewers), explaining that they had "assumed" that everyone knew what was going to happen. Unfortunately, some of us actually have lives, and are unable spend all week focusing on ER related news items.

It is regretful that in a state acclaimed for its highly educated population, Connecticut viewers are forced to sift through this quagmire of drivel that Channel 30 attempts to pass off as legitimate news. Regardless of ratings, I believe that reporters, news anchors, and television producers have an obligation to provide the public with accurate, prioritized, meaningful news each and every day. When our local news stations begin to sound more like Entertainment Tonight or Hard Copy than a true news cast, I believe viewers have an obligation to speak up or stop watching.

Now I have done both.