Fair & Balanced Media In A Biased World
September 13th 2008 16:05
In a week of media coverage filled with metaphors of makeup products on farm animals, sex education for kindergartner's and journalists going against the basic tenants of Broadcast News through Cut and Paste editing…
My goal this week is to dig deep and examine the role of media in a technological world.
While the framers were having disagreements over states rights vs. that of federalism, the costs of morally compromising barbaric industries and many other topics that go with forming a nation
The basic need for individual and society freedoms came with little argument.
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
The decision to give press freedoms equal that of individuals was simple…
A nation can not truly be free without checks and balances within its government and also having a watchdog that acts a protector of the people to independently report the goings on within her offices as well
One of the first examples of American press freedom was that of Paul Revere who reverently announced "The British are coming" to warn citizens to be ready to fight for their Independence.
These shouts were the first steps to war correspondence that told the story of hero's and valiant battles that were won or lost to pay the price for our freedom
Ultimately our press's first role of government reporting began with the story-telling process of the building and structure of our very own Constitution and Bill of Rights that would soon become the framework of free societies across the globe
The decision to give the press full freedom and rights equal to that of individuals was simple at it's core but also carries a reverse responsibility from the media to uphold the understanding of maintaining a professional decorum' in an effort to present accurate and informative information as the majority of society are unable collect and analyze this information themselves.
Somewhere between Paul Revere's historic ride and the coining of the term "liberal" and "biased" media something severely went wrong in our society….
Unlike most problems in politics the issue at hand isn't with lobbyists, government reform or from government not doing its job but rather it has come from our societal need to project our causes and sectionalized beliefs onto the Print Sheets, Radio & TV airwaves.
The war in the media to represent cross sections of America based on color, religion, liberal and conservative ideals came at the same time that our politicians began dividing us for political gain
When these splits occurred, hiring for political punditry and ideas for shows no longer became about who carried the best camera or voice presence but rather from past political work experience, political beliefs, affiliation with the far left or right and past administration affiliations
The end result to this is a marketing strategy that dictates the average person not have a favorite Radio, TV station or network based on news content or covering the best topics, but rather whether a station is liberal or conservative in tone and also has an equal cross section of blue and red anchors occupying news chairs for evening and election analysis.
Based on their affiliations and experiences on the right or left we hang on their every word as a society to interpret what demographic results mean and to understand what they are "really" saying in debates.
Independent anchors are rarely featured on these shows except as moderators and broadcasts typically have the goal of appealing to the "left" or "right" to impose a sense of agreement or disagreement rather then the hodgepodge of people who actually decide issue to issue and serve as the majority in deciding elections on a national level.
In my earlier blog I asked the question of why the media always gets it wrong…
In a modern age where the channels of the media are no longer restricted to the selling of permits of air time on Radio & Television or with having deep pockets to run a newspaper, the media is truly stuck in the quagmire of the "liberal" and "conservative" dark ages because the people now have the choice of building alternative forums for online discussion and analysis.
Simple fanning of the flames in reporting political news from the mass media is no longer going to work in "getting right"
· Getting it right is looking past ideals of liberal and conservative values in politics and breaking down the fundamental issues that will truly help the average American
· Getting it right is not focusing on every "gotcha" argument to paint someone as more liberal or conservative than they actually are to achieve an agenda
· Getting it right is using demographics to show American diversity and change in thought but not to wave it as a banner of division
Ultimately I understand that the majority of people are going to watch, listen or read what makes them feel comfortable and comes closest to their views and that includes liberal and conservative based forms of media.
This individualized form of media has a role in society and as long as they're making money this should always be so. Living in a free market society a person should be honored for finding a revenue source that brings them riches but when this same sectionalized media bleeds into historical events, candidate interviews and coverage a line has been crossed that breaks the agreement between the press and public
In writing this I am not of the mind to think the media will ever change her habits as a whole, as the corporate monster the American public has funded ultimately became a profitable enterprise with a strong business model. What I would like to see change is a change in thinking from the general public.
We all have different fundamental beliefs and some of us pursue these issues strongly, holding our politicians in either party to a standard of upholding these personal tenants.
I would be hypocritical if I sat here and told you that these beliefs were false, wrong or you should not possess them at all.
The idea that we can all vote or speak out about what we personally believe without someone looking over our shoulder is what built this great nation.
The problem in this country is when the process becomes mired with two different sides that have been polarized, bloodied and insulted for decades along the lines of race, age and gender can't come together and pass the laws that affect our every day needs and nations security.
The media is profiting off of this polarization on one side or another and couldn't rake in the amount of money she is making any other way. As long as we cheer a pundit for giving an unnecessary tongue lashing to a candidate for simply being part of a party that is close to the canidates personal beliefs instead of actually doing something wrong we're feeding the problem and have no reason to complain when pendulum swings on our candidates and the same thing happens to them.
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