Here is an article that Alex Bennett did for Hustler Magazine. Although it pertains to the recent presidential election, it all still holds true. It was edited by Bruce David who always makes Alex look good.
Once upon a time broadcast news was nothing more than rewritten copy from the newspapers. Most newscasts ended with the admonishment “for up to the minute details, consult your local newspapers.” Sure there were a few news commentators, but actual proactive coverage was scarce.
It wasn't until World War II that radio news came into its own, thanks to a renegade reporter named Edward R. Murrow. His vivid reports from London rooftops during air raids put radio reporting on the map. Murrow and his team of CBS reporters defined what we now call “Broadcast Journalism.”
When the war was over the “Murrow Boys” helped define television news, giving CBS its “Tiffany Network” reputation. Broadcast news was finally being taken seriously by everyone except the network “bean counters” who couldn't understand why their bosses allowed it to run at a loss. The bosses simply wanted something positive to point to when people complained about the “Beverly Hillbillies”. But that was then and this is now.
The downfall of broadcast news can be traced to the creation of CNN. Not that CNN wasn't a great concept. Ted Turner, disturbed by what he saw as the bias of Dan Rather (letting his views intrude on the newscast), decided to create a non-biased 24/7 news service. Now, for the first time, the news had to be profitable. Too bad money and good journalism don't mix...unless you compromise your product.
For 11 years CNN just barely kept afloat. Then, in 1991, their coverage of the Gulf War changed everything. CNN was the only news organization with a live feed during the bombing of Baghdad. Their subsequent war coverage not only gave cable news credibility but large numbers. With numbers, came profit.
Broadcast news had become big money just as the grizzled and aging old guard reporters were falling by the wayside. They were replaced by “journalists” who had a new agenda: fame, glory, big money and perfect hair. Journalistic credibility quickly eroded. By the time we got to the second Iraq war, the bar had been significantly lowered.
Smelling profits, other organizations entered the cable news frey. With their right wing bias, Fox gave CNN a run for its money, eventually knocking them into second place. In response, CNN became more conservative in its reporting. Just as bad, GE, a major war contractor, seized ownership of NBC and its cable news outlets.
During the second Gulf War a Bush administration genius came up with the idea of embedding journalists in with the military. Under the guise of freedom of the press, “embedding” reporters became a way to keep them in line. When you're out covering a war with the troops, the last thing you want is to piss them off. The fear of being cut from access, or worse, getting yourself killed, made the press more compliant and, ultimately, a willing tool of the Bush machine. They became a cheering squad for the war, presenting coverage that was little more than a squalid reality show. Reliable access to war information was cut off. Sometimes facts were even falsified.
As the disinformation grew, so did support for the war. At one point 75% of the American public believed Iraq helped perpetrate the events of 9/11. The news also pushed the notion of Iraq’s “weapons of mass destruction,” despite the lack of evidence. Bush and his boys played the press like a finely tuned violin.
A few alternative news sources protested but they were not widely accessible. It wasn't that the public was stupid -- just too trusting of their mainstream sources. Mainstream news had betrayed them.
Rather than do real investigative work, broadcast news got lazy, accepting press handouts from the “Bushies” without question. America was sold a bill of goods and the salesmen were the press. As if all that wasn’t bad enough, the way they’ve handled this national election is even worse:
“Hold that thought right there Senator Clinton, but as you know we have to go to a commercial break.” Who do you think made that statement? David Letterman? Larry King? It was NBC news anchor Brian “my eyes blink so much it looks like I'm sending a coded message” Williams. And he said it during a democratic presidential debate! Imagine interrupting a possible leader of the free world -- in mid sentence, no less -- to break for a commercial. Since when did debates of this kind even have commercials? Since broadcast news went into the dumper, that's when!
What's wrong with running commercials, you might ask? On commercial programs, ad costs are based on the size of the audience. How do you get a large audience? You create drama. So if your political debates are part of your commercial programming you cast them as you would a reality show.
“Let's promote the good looking black guy against the white woman.”
That had to be going through their heads. “Forget Edwards. There's no tension there. Besides he hates corporations and we are one.”
The candidates that didn’t fit their scenario were cast as losers, making it impossible for them to get traction. The networks weren't promoting a debate as much as they were a “cage match.” Not only did they pick the players, they created the tension as well.
The worst of them is Tim Russert, the pudgy, annoying chief of NBC's Washington bureau and moderator of “Meet The Press.” (The show should be renamed “Meet The Russert” since he monopolizes every discussion.) At one point during a debate he shouted at Hillary Clinton, then argued with her. Hey Tim, please look up the definition of moderator!
Russet also trotted out endless poll numbers that pitted black voters against white voters. On one occasion he even made the blanket statement that Hispanic people don't like black people. What is the point of setting one group against another if not to jazz up the “cage match.” Thanks, Tim, for a hot heaping pile of race relations.
On the sillier side, NBC reporter Andrea Mitchell (who’s married to Allan Greenspan) was swooning over Sen. Barack Obama. Then she went off the tracks entirely when she said “He has a lot of young supporters like Maria Shriver.” Maria Shiver? Young? Maybe to Mrs. Greenspan whose husband must be pushing a hundred and who herself is just a facelift away from looking like Norman Bates mother.
Then there is CNN. When he was running for the presidential nomination, Senator Christopher Dodd, would publish (on his website) the amount of debate time the candidates would get to state their various positions. Obama and Clinton usually got the lion's share. However, old Wolf spoke more than either of them. Shut up Wolf!!!!
The Democratic debate in Cleveland, Ohio, was the biggest draw ever. Eight million people watched it and NBC cleaned up in advertising revenue. Creating this newest reality show by choosing the cast and selling it to America, had made the “cage match” a major hit.
Am I suggesting that news people be censored? No! I’m saying they should get back to the moral principals that guided broadcast journalism in its golden age. The networks should treat news as if were a wildlife sanctuary. Just sit in the brush, film the action and let nature take its course. Don't disturb the order of things. If you don't make money, run it as a loss and figure that’s your penance for running “Deal Or No Deal”.
If you ever watched “Star Trek” you know there was “The Prime Directive.” It was the only crime -- interfering in the natural evolution of a civilization -- that carried the death penalty. Am I suggesting that these news creeps be executed for trying to meddle with the natural course of our lives? Of course not!
Well, maybe.
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