Brummett isn't seeing the big picture -- it's as if he believes that "viewer votes" are dictating ALL of the news coverage, when that's not the case at all.

It's a nifty way to engage viewers/readers and give them "ownership" of a story that they otherwise might not have/feel.

I voted on the current choice of Hillary Clinton, AIDS day, or Animal adoptions on ?Choose your news day 17.? I am excited over Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State, but I also feel we Americans are spoiled and spoiled rotten.

According to Wikipedia, are 38 million people in the world every day that wake up knowing they have AIDS and have to live with that knowledge unending. There will be 6000 children orphaned by AIDS today.

One website article boasted that more than half the worlds population have running water now. Think about that statement for a moment. That means a little less than half the worlds population DO NOT HAVE RUNNING WATER in their homes. I find that fact incredible! Most of us are a 2 or more car family. Most of us have at least 2 televisions in our home. Most of us have a pantry and refrigerator full of food. Our economy is in the trash but we as a people are living comfortable compared to the rest of the world.

Back to the issue of AIDS. I was shocked by the statistics I recently read on the net after hearing some facts about the horrible disease elsewhere. I know most of Americans including myself have little to worry about when it comes to AIDS. Are we so callas as to the woes of the rest of the world? Do we care about what happens outside our comfort area? Hmmm!

Besides basic logic and common sense, there is plenty of research to show how dialogue is more engaging and progressive for making connections and developing relationships, and ultimately more 'attractive' -- than monologue. News is a service; getting input and feedback from those you are serving, in order to better serve them, is a no brainer!

Mr. Brummett is like the geezers who complain that, back in their day by god, men wore pants, women wore skirts, and nobody listened to this young whipper snapper Elvo or Elvin or Elvis or whatever.

What he's really saying is that his readers are too dumb to have a say in what is "real news." Only he and his fellow news hounds, also called editors, get to choose what gets printed and what doesn't.

It is the arrogance of guys like Brummett that has caused the public to view the traditional media with such skepticism and disdain. Remember that great "news hound" Dan Rather who would have been successful in promoting a false story about George Bush getting special treatment to avoid military service? It took what Brummett calls the "yahoos with laptops" to get the truth out despite the best efforts of Rather and his fellow news hound. Today rather than doesn't have a job.

In short: Thank you Kristin and KATV for having more faith in and respect for your audience than does Brummett and Stephens Media.

I'm with Brummett on this one, but I've been in his business at a time in my life. Let your own news producers decide what to cover. For one thing, news priorities can change during the course of a day. It doesn't seem to be a good idea to be locked into an online vote. I like a lot of interactivity, but merely because it's possible to do a particular task interactively doesn't mean it should be done that way. KATV's producers and news directors are well trained to decide what to cover. News coverage is a subjective matter in the first place, which makes it difficult enough sometimes to decide what the top story is. That's why there's variance among various news outlets on a given day. But it ought not to be a popularity contest.

And besides that, I see the quality of comments on plenty of message boards and it scares the daylights out of me to think they might be deciding anything.

Tell Brummett to go eat another Doublestack....

just started following you on twitter a few days ago kristen. enjoyed the updates so far! this is hilarious. john brummett has to be one of the worst columnist in the entire country. why in the world the democrat-gazette has held on to him this long is a mystery to me. my father and i both stopped reading his column years ago. he never has anything positive to say and seems to be a constant complainer. let him complain all he wants. smart, intelligent people have wised up to mr. brummett. your days (if you ever had any to begin with) of typical, boring, censored, news are over. we have crossed over into the 20th century. but it won't hurt my feelings if you choose not to join us.

Ha ha - this message goes out to old people everywhere: Let it be known that Kristen Fisher will be taking no **** from any of you...

You would think that with all of his "experience" in this field, Mr "B" would be quick to stand up for any kind of journalism... but like one has said long before me---"jealousy,in many ways is a form of flattery" Kristin, I wouldn't be surprised if you leave a way longer, way more professional lasting impact on the journalism/broadcasting world--not just here in Arkansas, but around the world. What you are doing with Qik and Twitter is a definete sign of the times. You're way ahead of the game-- and not to mention at a young age! Keep up the wonderful work... after all-- we ,the viewers will be watching your reporting long after this "B" is gone.

Devoted KATV viwer

Sounds like someone is upset that they didn't think of the idea first. Keep on keeping on KATV and Kristin Fisher!

I've ignored Brummett's columns since the late 90s. I'm not interested in hearing about him whine and complain. Unfortauntely, enough people read his column and respond in some way to him - he's able to keep his job because the paper knows the lemmings keep coming back.