Tuesday, February 21, 2006
The News That's Not Fit to Print
Ever wonder why we seem to get a one-sided picture of the world - and especially of the Iraq war - from most of the mainstram media ( MSM - big newspapers, magazines and TV nets)? The MSM seems to offer lots of daily counts of bombings and expressions of gloom but little or no good news about Iraq or the Bush Administration's policies.
Michael Barone discusses two very interesting news stories that did not make the traditional or mainstream media but did get a good airing in the new media of blogs. First, is this letter (please link it; it's worth the read) from the mayor of Tal Afar thanking the 3rd Army Cavalry Regiment for liberating his city. Second, is former Vice President Gore's extraordinary speech attacking US MidEast policy delivered to the Jidda Economic Forum in Saudi Arabia.
In this Barone Blog post , he raises and answers the question: "Why do the mainstream media ignore such interesting stories? A long time ago, David Broder, in his book Behind the Front Page, explained that reporters tend to look for the story where they think it is. Time is limited, resources are limited, and so like an intelligent hockey player you go to where you think the puck is headed. And where you think the puck is headed depends on how you think the world works, where you think history is headed.
The mainstream media think we are in a quagmire in Iraq—the same quagmire, they think, as in Vietnam. (Wrongly, I think, on Vietnam, as I discussed in a previous post.) The letter from the mayor of Tal Afar doesn't fit within this meme, so it doesn't appear. The mainstream media think that the Democrats are offering thoughtful and intelligent criticism of the obviously wacky and harmful policies of the Bush administration. Gore's obviously wacky denunciation of 'terrible abuses' and his apology for our (belated) tightening of visa requirements on Saudis does not fit within this meme, so it doesn't appear. At least not in the Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, New York Times, or Boston Globe, according to Hugh Hewitt."
I think that says it well. Biased reporting is reflected in selective non-reportage as much as in the writing that does get printed. One option is to read more blogs or to visit a few that summarize items. For the latter treatment on Iraq news, try the Mudville Gazette which has postings from our troops there. They also carry a daily and a weekly summary of newsworthy items.
Michael Barone discusses two very interesting news stories that did not make the traditional or mainstream media but did get a good airing in the new media of blogs. First, is this letter (please link it; it's worth the read) from the mayor of Tal Afar thanking the 3rd Army Cavalry Regiment for liberating his city. Second, is former Vice President Gore's extraordinary speech attacking US MidEast policy delivered to the Jidda Economic Forum in Saudi Arabia.
In this Barone Blog post , he raises and answers the question: "Why do the mainstream media ignore such interesting stories? A long time ago, David Broder, in his book Behind the Front Page, explained that reporters tend to look for the story where they think it is. Time is limited, resources are limited, and so like an intelligent hockey player you go to where you think the puck is headed. And where you think the puck is headed depends on how you think the world works, where you think history is headed.
The mainstream media think we are in a quagmire in Iraq—the same quagmire, they think, as in Vietnam. (Wrongly, I think, on Vietnam, as I discussed in a previous post.) The letter from the mayor of Tal Afar doesn't fit within this meme, so it doesn't appear. The mainstream media think that the Democrats are offering thoughtful and intelligent criticism of the obviously wacky and harmful policies of the Bush administration. Gore's obviously wacky denunciation of 'terrible abuses' and his apology for our (belated) tightening of visa requirements on Saudis does not fit within this meme, so it doesn't appear. At least not in the Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, New York Times, or Boston Globe, according to Hugh Hewitt."
I think that says it well. Biased reporting is reflected in selective non-reportage as much as in the writing that does get printed. One option is to read more blogs or to visit a few that summarize items. For the latter treatment on Iraq news, try the Mudville Gazette which has postings from our troops there. They also carry a daily and a weekly summary of newsworthy items.
