He Says, She Says Journalism

When I was younger, I dutifully watched network news and commentary, especially programs such as Meet the Press and Face the Nation. But I slowly came to the realization that I was not being informed, that I was not learning anything. And the reason, I discovered, was very simple.

In their efforts to present balanced programs, the format for such programs is always the same. Some topic is announced, and two guests, one from each political party, appear to present their sides of the issue. But anyone who keeps abreast of issues already knows the canned positions of the two parties, so listening to the two guests reiterate them never provides any additional insight. What is absent from this kind of programming is an objective adjudicator who has the ability to compare what the guests say to reality. I presume the networks believe that the hosts have this ability, but that's rarely true.

Once upon a time in America, and perhaps elsewhere too, journalists were among the most educated class of people. Being members of that class, their opinions carried some weight. So the editorial was used to influence public opinion. But journalists today are not any more educated that their readers. And the issues that now call for understanding are far more complex that they were even a century ago. Journalists are just not up to the task anymore.

The result is that the news now amounts to little more that reports of what this or that person has said rather than reports of what has happened. So although we know what the politicians propose, we lack the means of judging the validity of the opposing proposals. Consequently, issues never really get resolved, and the nation's institutions break down.

Think about it. Our legal system which once held that it is better for the guilty to go unpunished than for the innocent to be convicted now routinely convicts innocent persons. Our schools, on every level, fail to educate. Our churches, supported by people who say they are believers, fail to get their members to act in accordance with their beliefs. Movers and shakers in the business community are increasingly being found guilty of defrauding both their investors and their clients. Scientific knowledge is valued when it becomes marketable technology but is ignored in the absence of marketability even when it portends disaster. In short, we have adopted the practice of judging things by what is said rather than by what is done. We have taken the age-old distinction between appearance and reality and shucked off the reality.

It's time to take notice of what people say only when actions and facts are available to support their views. All else is nothing but mere hot air. (6/17/2005)

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