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At the Democratic National Convention last week in Denver, Dan Rather spoke to an audience about how mainstream media companies have compromised journalistic integrity by prioritizing stockholders before public interests.
Dan Rather has covered the news since 1956, and he should therefore have a tremendous amount of our respect for his service to our country. He was the first to report the John F. Kennedy assassination. He covered the Watergate scandal.
But he says that today, media corporations aren’t looking our for their reporters and anchors in the same way they were in the 1970s. They pander to the administration and to their stakeholders. That’s why I don’t watch or read much mainstream news anymore.
It’s why much of the time, the only “news” that I can tolerate are shows like Jon Stewart’s Daily Show, and The Colbert Report. While they’re not exactly journalists, comedians have a beautiful way of asking the questions that need to be asked and pointing the spotlight right on the absurdities of our society. They make me care about the world around me, and yet I can still sort of laugh at how silly life is and I can still sleep at night.
It’s amazing how one way or another, I still pick up all the most important headlines. Even though I don’t “follow” the news, I still see the coverage of the Russian-Georgian conflict. I still heard Barack Obama’s presidential nomination speech. And much of the time, even though I shun the mainstream news, I still feel much more informed than most of my peers! I guess I pick up a lot from conversation, and from what people find important enough to republish online. But, you have to realize that the news that gets reported on television is frequently propaganda or marketing, and the rest of the time they’re only telling you half of the story. You’ve gotta research for yourself.
Rather’s message to the members of today’s media:
…make it something that cannot be ignored—not by the political parties, not by our candidates, not by the owners and executives of media companies. Write these people. Call these people. Send the message that you know your rights. You know that you are entitled to news media as diverse and varied as the American people, and that you deserve a press that provides the raw material of democracy—the good information that Americans need to be full participants in our government of, by, and for the people. …And most of all, show them with your example what a truly independent press looks like, because your country needs you now more than ever.
So what’s the solution? How do we stay informed about the world around us, but get the full story? How do we ensure that voters get all the unbiased information they need to make good decisions at the polls? What do you do to keep up with the news?
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7 September 2008 at 9:39 am
I’m very much the same way. I can hardly stand to watch TV, but if it comes to events, I get a lot more from Comedy Central than CNN. However, watching TV in general makes me feel dumbed down and lethargic. I don’t do a good job at trying to keep myself informed, but I set my home page to BBC News. Then, I can’t help but to look at the headlines from time to time and hear about what’s going on. I feel like the BBC does a decent job at staying unbiased and reporting events without sensationalizing them. It’s worth checking out if you haven’t.
7 September 2008 at 12:38 pm
Good point, Robb! I typically enjoy BBC International. And like you, I have my homepage set to an aggregator that pulls in all the top stories from Digg and other bookmarking sites, but also from Google and Yahoo News, Wired, and Huffington Post. So, I get a lot of nerdy web junk, but when it’s important enough that people are talking about it, I also get the biggest headlines. Thanks for the comment!
8 September 2008 at 10:13 am
Like you and Robb, I enjoy news from the BBC. I also have found that podcasts from the BBC, NPR, and The Economist are great ways to get information updates in the portions I want and on my schedule–a daily roundup of world headlines, the week’s most impacting stories, quarterly forecasts tailored to the areas I are about most like the environment, green technology forecasts, global economic predictions, etc.
I also find that more specialized/”niche” media can offer intelligent opinions, such as The Financial Times, Wallstreet Journal and Grist.org.
As for televised media, aside from the Daily Show and Colbert Report I dig the Jim Lehr Newshour in the evening and Washington Week in the morning with Gwen Ifill. Both are on PBS, as are BBC broadcasts. PBS also offers podcasts of many of its shows, like Washington Week, Frontline World, and even a podcast from Wired magazine.
Beyond these, I feel watching news channels to be a drain of brain cells as well as an insult to the intelligence of any reasonably well-informed person.
Great post Cody!
12 September 2008 at 1:56 am
Hey Cody, When I first read the headline, the reporter/news junkie in me thought, “Oh noes!” But clearly you are getting the news, as are the other commenters, because John Stewart, BBC, PBS, NPR, online media outlets, etc. are giving it to you.
I think the idea of “watching the news” is a hangover from generations past, when there wasn’t a TV commercial after every 60-second news segment and radio and newspapers were the only other forms of content delivery. I can’t stand to watch the evening news any more because there is literally nothing new for me on it (I’ve already read it earlier that day on ABCNews.com, CNN.com, MSNBC, or my local paper’s website) and commercials are such a time suck. Like you guys, I only watch PBS and C-SPAN on the tube, and I get the rest from the web or NPR. (If I had Comedy Central, I would definitely watch Stewart and Colbert!)
12 September 2008 at 7:58 am
Thanks for the comments Michelle & Nicole. My title is purposefully brazen. I do get a lot of news from the web and friends though, and I read a tremendous amount. But yeah, like you said I don’t care for how much advertising or bias we have in mainstream evening news. Bias is everywhere (especially Comedy Central!), I guess we just have to be aware of it.
If you like Jon Stewart and Colbert, they actually have some of the best online offerings. You can access their sites through the Comedy Central website and watch full online episodes each week.
20 September 2008 at 7:22 pm
You got me with that title too.
I’ve been getting a lot of my news through Twitter lately - the people I follow always seem to break it first. I also follow one mainstream news Twitter feed for the main headlines (They are usually straightforward in 140 characters), and if something interests me, I’ll find resources to read more.
I have to admit, I may be biasing my own news to a certain extent by reading writers who agree my opinions (I consider myself pretty liberal). I suppose a lot of us do this to a certain extent.
3 November 2008 at 2:38 pm
I check Digg several times a day and, though obviously biased, enjoy watching Olbermann and Maddow. Stewart & Colbert are also favorites.