 Eric Alterman's What Liberal Media? is now out in paperback. The author offers a new preface, which is posted on his blog. A good read and seemingly intended as a response to Bernard Goldberg's book, Bias.
I enjoyed Goldberg's reporting on CBS, but found his book to be anecdotal, bitter, and entirely off base. (For example, he simplistically attributes to ideology what is usually better explained by economic pressures and cultural professionalization.) TV critic Tom Shales was less kind, characterizing Goldberg as a "no-talent hack" and a "full-time addlepated windbag." Thanks to Goldberg, Shales wrote, "Disgruntled has-beens everywhere have a new hero and role model."
Bias was provocative in an amusing sort of way: Goldberg likened Dan Rather to a mafia hit man, for example. Shortly after the book was released, I happened to be in a meeting with CBS News President Andrew Heyward. When Heyward entertained questions from our group, I thought it would be fun to ask what he thought of the book. Heyward encouraged us to check the book out of the library, adding that "Bernie's biggest problem with television news is he's not on it." |
