Aggravation with the Newspaper
Have a look at Tom Tobin’s latest creation at the D&C Editorial blog. If it was written by ANYONE ELSE I wouldn’t have written this. Trouble is, it is written by a newspaper person. For me it sums up one of the fundamental issues I have with what we call the mainstream media. Just a disclaimer - I’m not beating up on Mr Tobin here - really. I liked the piece. Yes, I am beating up the idea his piece represents.
You can read the entire thing here or the snippet below. As background, the NY National Guard AG visited the D&C editorial board.
Our fighting Guard
[snip]…he general acknowledged that the Guard would be less strained if the Bushies had not decided to change it from a strategic reserve to an operational one, meaning moving it from the back burner to the front. Funny, I don’t remember much public discussion about changing the fundamental mission of the Guard. Just happened, I guess. Sort of like a lot of things in Iraq.
…if the Bushies….not much public discussion…Just happened…sort of like a lot of things in Iraq.
This piece is simply a metaphor of what is wrong with the main stream media. This stuff simply doesn’t happen in a vacuum.
It happens when our famed 4th estate fails to ask questions and investigate. It happens when they gleefully embrace the stories that come to them in the form of press releases as opposed to going out and digging them up. It happens when they blame someone else (if only those darn Bushies would tell us) instead of themselves.
Remember the run up to the Iraq war? The media was on board. Next week Gen Petraeus is testifying before Congress and it is widely believed that he will say things are getting better because violence is declining. Is this true - Not if the media digs deeper. Will the media ask questions, investigate or shrug their shoulders and wonder from oblivion why stuff “just happens“.
There is WAY too much of this lately - shoving the propaganda down our throats right and left. If this is a prelude to “Betrayus’” big speech on 9/11 (I still can’t believe they pulled this stunt on THAT day)…then they’ve got a tough bill to sell.
But I think there is more to it than that. Something is in the “works”. This administration has a habit of giving us the set-up for the next big show…and I smell a set-up. I hope I’m wrong…but election day is approaching. Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat?
Okay, I’ll beat up on Tobin. Tobin has posted something with spelling errors, and he fails to capitalize the title of the man, which should be “Adjutant General” and not “adjutant general”. But that’s trivial.
What is your point, Mr. Tobin? Are you trying to make a point with your statement “Funny, I don’t remember much public discussion about changing the fundamental mission of the Guard. Just happened, I guess. Sort of like a lot of things in Iraq.” Or are these just throwaway lines from a person who is puzzled?
Apparently, Mr. Tobin has no point, he is just puzzled, which makes for scintillating writing (not!). STLO7 makes a very good point about how this happened. But … Mr. Tobin … those of us who read the blogosphere know how these things happened. We know what the Bushies were up to, and we knew these things years ago. It was reported, but not in a forum Mr. Tobin reads. We also understand that the Bushies have done everything they can to make decisions in secret, with the American public knowing as little as possible. We have seen the pattern for years, and we know it. Mr. Tobin apparently is just starting to realize that here’s one case where something isn’t quite kosher.
Mr. Tobin, in an effort to strike a rhetorical pose, is setting himself up for such comments as these. STLO, you are right on the money with your criticism of the media and its complicity. All of the things MSM now discusses as though they happened magically were already being discussed in the blogs and pointedly ignored by the MSM in the run up to the war and every day since.
In fairness to Tobin, the D&C didn’t have the capabilities to write about WMD and so on, but…I wonder if Gannett news did. It would be interesting to know a bit about the resources of Gannett news relative to, say, McClatchy. I’m guessing they’re smaller, but I’m curious how much more “big picture” reporting Gannett could do. They cover Albany pretty well at least. How much more could they do?
No, I don’t think the resources of the D&C or Gannett is the issue. Tobin is unaware that blogs have been discussing this National Guard issue for years, and that contrary to his puzzlement, there was public discussion on this issue, albeit in blogs which Tobin probably doesn’t read. That’s one of the issues here.
The other issue is that although Tobin seems to realize that the government has done something that he doesn’t seem to like, he fails to call for newspapers or the media in general to dig into how this happened. He could have redeemed himself somewhat by adding one more sentence: “The media should dig into this.” Or better yet, “I’m going to have someone here at the D&C/Gannett look deeper into this”.
Tobin has written negatively about blogs in the past. (I know, because one of those blogs, Rochester Turning, has quoted Tobin’s writings on the subject.) I am not aware of him writing any positive remarks about blogs, but I don’t read him regularly. Sure would be nice if Mr. Tobin acknowledged that in some things (like this issue), blogs have indeed provided more useful information than the traditional media, and that the traditional media has lagged behind blogs on some issues. Tobin certainly seems to be a poster-boy for this point.
Yeah, you’re certainly right about that part of it. But I am curious what Gannett could do in the way of national news coverage if they tried.
They would cover John Edwards’ hair cuts, just like every other news organization.
Exile - This is a meta post so think beyond Iraq.
Sure the D&C doesn’t have a war correspondent. Does it have a Rennaissance Square correspondenct? A COMIDA Correspondent? A Water Authority Correspondent? Fast Ferry Correspondent? Yea they cover “the news” one shot little follow-up. That statement is a broad brush stroke but I don’t believe I’m off base here.
I mean take Ren Square - 4 years into it and where are we? Compare Ren Square with Iraq - 6 years into that and where are we? We are now just realizing that the government has no plan and spending money like a drunken sailor. Sounds like Fast Ferry all over again. Isn’t the 4th estate supposed to question things?
I don’t think they are supposed to say well, gosh darn stuff just happens.
Look at Jay Gallaghers latest above the fold piece and read the special interest press release above update receiving a failing economic grade. No interview with Maggie No mention of COMIDA. Yet that ranks above the fold.
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