Media and Politics in America



When did the media in America become such a joke. The media used to be a source you could trust; a source which reported the facts, not the false truths the country's two major political parties want you to hear. I long for the day when the media will become a trustworthy and ethical filter that will point out the contradictions of a candidate, identify the lies and deceptions, and focus their reporting on the issues that matter.

Reporting of the 2004 Presidential Campaign has been disappointing. Outside of the three presidential debates and the single vice-presidential debate, the candidates haven't truly been confronted to talk about their vision for America. Nope, the media hasn't done its job. Instead of hearing about where the two major party candidates want to take the United States of America, I hear strong accusations about what the other candidate has done, is doing, or will do if elected. How about talking about what you will do! How about focussing your time and energy on what will become of this great country if you are elected. So why do I blame the media for these types of remarks? Simple. The media isn't doing its job; it isn't challenging what these candidates are saying. It isn't demanding that they support their statements with actual facts or figures. Instead it has acted as a free form of partisan advertising; words and actions statistically predicted to resinate with the base of a particular party.

I can't watch political talk shows any-longer; it's all a bunch of he said she said. One party will make a baseless claim and another party will come right back and make another. Call them scare tactics, smoke screens, or just plain lies, it's all the same.

What we need in America is a media presence that will dig through the "spin" and present the events of the day as they are without the partisan bias overwhelming the content. Thank god for The Daily Show with John Stewart . I started watching The Daily Show a few months ago and don't know how I got through the day without it. Mr. Stewart and his team of four correspondents do a wonderful job of digging through the "spin" and pointing out clear lies, mistakes, and baseless claims. While not a real new program, The Daily Show still provides a good deal of perspective on the world today and goes to great lengths to show how the "real media" fails the American people.

So what brought all of this on? Mr. Stewart recently was a guest on CNN's Crossfire, a political talk show. The show typically invites a conservative and a liberal on the show to duke it out over the hot political issues. Well, instead of that format, they invited Mr. Stewart as their sole guest. Instead of playing along with the hosts Paul Begala (liberal) and Tucker Carlson (conservative), Mr. Stewart let them have a piece of his mind. He called them out about how they have squandered a perfect opportunity to encourage debate amongst the two political parties; insisting that their show has instead become a platform for both parties to "spin" their views without factual support. At one point he said "No, no, no, you're not too rough on them. You're part of their strategies. You are partisan, what do you call it, hacks." It was a sight to see. If the link doesn't work,
search on google.


Posted: Tue - October 19, 2004 at 09:51 PM        

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