Kathryn Jean Lopez over at The Corner asks, “How Much Coverage Is Too Much Coverage?” regarding news reporting of the Haitian earthquake.

She quotes the following passage from America magazine’s blog about CNN coverage in Haiti:

The most troubling video though is the one above, the admittedly gripping and widely seen, tale of a young girl trapped under the rubble. Anderson Cooper stands atop the wreckage covering the story, as her family and friends claw at the concrete in a desperate attempt to free her. Go to mark of 1:10 to see Cooper stick a microphone under the rubble and catch her terrified screams and choked sobs.

Well the first thing that comes to your Mandarin’s mind is why is this jackass Anderson Cooper standing on top of the rubble that this family is trying to move in an effort to save this young girl’s life? And then, this preening fool sticks the microphone into the rubble to so that you can hear the girl cry out for help.

Funny, the one time that the press decides not to get involved in a news story (unlike CNN’s political coverage), is the one time that they should have. In all fairness though, at least CNN’s Sanjay Gupta was actually dispensing medical aid to the survivors even though he was only there to report on the lack of medical care.

The Mandarin

The Mandarin, whose real name is 吏恆, joined the order in 1309, and introduced the Gormogons into England during the 18th Century.

The Mandarin enjoys spending time with his pet manticore, Βάρἰκος, or Barry (who can be found in the Bestiary). When not in the Castle…well, frankly, nobody is quite sure where he goes.

The Mandarin popularized the fine art of “gut booting,” by which he delivers a powerful kick to the stomach of anyone that annoys him. Although nearly universal today, the act of gut booting or threatening someone or something with a gut boot is solely due to him.