The Media Drop

I have a problem with journalism - or, should I say, some journalists.

Sure, it’s not a surprising statement to make these days, but it’s something I’m starting to notice as I correspond with some reporters, editors, and other staffers at publications across the U.S., and, in fact, across the world.

My specific issue is with attitude. It’s not even liberal bias or conservative bias or anything like that. There are two divisions here: A) Me, as a blogger, being treated like I have no idea what I am asking / reading / writing / doing on my blog and that since I’m not a trained journalist and don’t work for a vaunted publication that I’m not worth a comment or a response (this also goes for a few choice PR professionals in some cases, to be honest, but that’s a whole different post) or B) That some people really do have a holier-than-thou attitude in general, even towards others in the profession.

I’d been holding off on this for a while, but this morning something, set me off. I had read an op-ed earlier this week by a student editor at an university paper, regarding the local free weekly’s coverage of some on-campus incidents of late. The item was highly critical of the weekly’s “news” items, stating that instead of following tenets of journalism, they were injected with so much opinion, conjecture, and opinion that they weren’t really news at all. I thought it was worth an entry here, as it was an interesting media criticism from a ‘competitor’ of sorts, so I contacted the editor of the weekly, asking if he had any comments in response to the statements about the way his publication had been handling the news. I wasn’t looking for a hostile response, or an attack piece - it seemed only fair to get their say, as this was a direct shot at the paper’s journalistic integrity, in effect. This morning, I received a response. At first, I thought nothing of it - the editor stated that they get to say whatever they want every week. He also said they “saw no reason to slam an opinion columnist for expressing his opinion.” Sure, it’s not that bad, right? Or is it. Did I ask for a “slam” at all? No, I went back, re-read my request, and thought about it awhile. I was just looking for a “We believe our journalists are upholding certain standards in covering these stories, etc., etc., etc.” But that’s not what I got. It’s that it is more about the flash and the immediate reaction to “slam” someone else, rather than just respond to a simple question about integrity. Sure, the writer was an op-ed columnist - that’s fine. I’m glad I got a response from the paper. Maybe I’m making too much of the term “slam” being used in the reply - but I don’t think I am.

It’s not just this one instance that makes me feel like this kind of attitude is in existence. People are very quick to judge in our 24-hour news cycle kind of world, and it’s very frustrating. Sure, bloggers are quick on the draw to post things, sometimes forcing themselves into regular corrections in order to keep their credibility to a certain level - but they’re not alone, IMHO.

To be clear, this is in no way a slap in the face of all journalists, or even the bulk of journalists - it’s a few eggs that like making a ruckus in the basket, in the interest of….something. I love reading, hearing about news in the world of media, and doing what I get to do on this blog every day - but I can see why there are so many people who use the term ‘mainstream media’ derisively. I don’t take issue with the media as a collective - it exists for a reason, and, for the most part, does okay. It’s becoming much more self-sufficient and self-’editing’, if you will, when it comes to keeping people in check. Op-eds write about other op-eds. Conservative radio hosts get to comment on liberal ones, and vice versa. There are pockets of fairness that can’t be argued with - there are others that have a few steps to take. But the one thing that has to be realized, if the news media wants to continue to be held at a high regard (don’t start debating on this point, please), is that news is news is news - it’s not spin or flash or anything else that tells the story. If you’re looking to distance yourself from the competition, don’t take the “South Park” way out. [Thanks to RatherBiased.com for the clip]