Serene Branson Grammy Scare

Even though the Grammy's were a couple of weeks ago, Serene Branson and her Grammy report is still a viral story on the Internet.  Branson is a reporter for CBS Los Angeles, and while she was on scene in downtown LA she stumbled over her words and could not be understood.

The video instantly went viral and soon there were YouTube videos all over the Internet with titles such as "Funny," "CBS Reporter Serene Branson Grammy lol the media is so dumb," "Grammy Reporter MESSES UP Live," etc.  Soon after, it was reported Branson may have suffered a stroke.  Some of those who posted comments about the incident removed or changed them after they found out she may have had a stroke.  For example, in an article about the video by blogger Dave Lee; he stated that The Daily Record posted, "Serene Branson was presenting for CBS2 at the biggest music bas in the world when she struggled to pout together a coherent sentence."  It was replaced with, "CBS reporter Serene Branson was last night under observation in hospital after it was feared she may have suffered a stroke live on air during the Grammy Awards broadcast."

There are many different opinions on this incident.  Some think that the incident still is funny even after the reports, and they say she was just nervous or forgot what she was going to say.  Others think the comments making fun of Branson are too harsh and should be removed; especially after she was looked at medically.

One of the critics was Nir Rosen, a journalist who held a position at New York University.  One of his tweets was, "i apologize for being insensitive, its always wrong, thats obvious, but i'm rolling my eyes at all the attention she will get."  Rosen resigned after the tweets he made about the incident. The University condoned his comments.

You can watch Branson talking about the incident and how she is doing now here.  This incident shows the impact of videos and social media today, as well as the instant news demand.  Twenty years ago, Rosen maynot have been condemned for his comments and publications would not have had to change their articles because they did not post news instantly.  Now, when comments are made online and articles are posted, the author must be ready for the possible positive or negative effects his or her comments can have.  The author must also be ready for the possibility he or she spoke too soon.