Fear, Misinformation and the Collapse of Journalistic Standards

The following articles are grouped under the heading of Journalism and Beyond from Free Press.

Can You Smell the Fear? Timothy Karr, Huffington Post

Switch on cable news or tune in to talk radio and fear comes wafting in. It's a fear that's laced with paranoia, stoked by misinformation and prejudice and fed to millions of people via powerful media. But most of all, it's a fear of the changes that an overwhelming majority of Americans called for when they stepped into voting booths last November.

Let's Debate Real Issues Wade Henderson, Politico

"Personnel is policy," Fox News show host Glenn Beck has declared in defense of demonizing obscure officeholders. Well actually, policy really is policy. So let's debate health care, energy, economics and education, not some bombastic broadcaster's boogeymen.

Divide Between Right, Mainstream Media Michael Calderone and Mike Allen, Politico

The right-wing media's single-minded focus on a handful of targets over the past months and its success in pushing those stories into the mainstream have underscored the sharp divide between traditional news organizations and the bloggers and talk show hosts aggressively pursuing an ideological agenda online and on TV and radio.

Disappearing Iraq Jane Arraf, Columbia Journalism Review

Although its role has diminished, the U.S. military is still involved in almost every facet of Iraqi society, from mediating disputes to providing drinking water to conducting combat operations. But reporters have been reduced to covering ribbon cuttings and positive news stories, which has perpetuated a convenient fiction.

Truth? Yes, Sir! Columbia Journalism Review

When a country goes to war, its citizens need to be appraised of ongoing developments and what is being done in their name. They have a right to as close an approximation of truth as journalists can deliver, given the limitations. The right to bear witness is part of the fight. We have two wars on now, and not enough truth.

The Death and Life of American Journalism Robert W. McChesney, Delaware Online

As the number of journalists collapses, the ranks of public relations operatives expand. These PR agents are quite willing to create "news" for us to the benefit of their surreptitious paymasters. A new system of independent journalism must be created and subsidized by the public if democracy is to survive and prosper.

Mainstream Media Miss the Point of Participatory Journalism Alfred Hermida, MediaShift

Online journalism is still in its infancy and it will take time for journalistic attitudes to change. But there are very few signs that news organizations are reinventing their relationship with the audience and tapping into the participatory potential of the Web to reimagine journalism.

The Spectacle of Illiteracy and the Crisis of Democracy Henry A. Giroux, Truthout.org

The collapse of journalistic standards finds its counterpart in the rise of civic illiteracy. What this decline in civility, the emergence of mob behavior and the utter blurring in the media between a truth and lie suggests is that we have become one of the most civically illiterate nations on the planet.