WCSH6 supports woo

Posted on November 9, 2011 by Michael

WCSH6 is the local news channel I most often watch. I enjoy the setup, the newscasters, and the background isn’t from the 90’s like every other channel. I even “like” the station’s Facebook page. I get some decent status updates there, including the number one reason anyone watches TV news – weather forecasts. But not all the status updates are so great. I unfortunately recently got one absolutely awful update around 7:30am this morning:

Two ways to heal for half off! Find your healthy balance for life. https://www.dealchicken.com/portland-me/4201
Women Receive 50% Off a Polarity Session or 53% Off an Ayurvedic Massage at Tracy Liberty!
http://www.dealchicken.com
Chicks rule, and Tracy Liberty Polarity Therapy and Ayurvedic Massage knows it: The wellness provider focuses solely on women’s health. Tracy Liberty is offering a 90-minute polarity session for only $42.50 (a $85 value) or a 90-minute ayurvedic massage for only $45 (a $95 value). The polarity sessi…

This is some sort of sponsorship deal the station does with various companies. I presume they make a few bucks in exchange for throwing up a status update or two. That’s all well and fine, except that in this case, they are making money by supporting woo. Ayurveda is utter malarkey and WCSH6 ought distance itself if it wants to maintain the good reputation it currently has. In fact, I wrote as much in response to the status update soon after it was made. My post has now disappeared, though I have reiterated my point. (I will also be linking to this post on their wall.)

In looking at the sponsor’s deal, it appears to include an inexpensive message along with some yoga and woo medicine. I’m sure the message is fine (in fact, it sounds like a pretty good deal), and yoga is nice and dandy, but there really is no need for the woo medicine. Given the lack of scientific standards in alternative medicine, safety is a major concern. Ayurvedic practitioners have a history of doling out toxic materials. (They even think that simple heating and melting will solve toxicity issues.) There is no telling what the leader of this woo, Tracy Liberty, is offering. It may be completely inert, but there are not sufficient standards present to allow a consumer to make a fair and informed decision. (If there were such standards in alt-med, one thing would lead to another and we probably could get rid of the malarkey all together.)

I find it disappointing that WCSH6 has decided to support woo. Whatever profit they made from this deal is not worth it. It puts the health and safety of consumers at risk for no good reason. I hope the station will refrain from making such deals in the future.

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