Closing thoughts on the"Liberal Media"...
The final instalment of a series
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Even now with admitted self-censorship, three years of U.S. occupation, 13,190 wounded, 1,752 Americans dead, and no weapons of mass destruction, criticism is sharp on a media that fails to paint a happy picture of Iraq. In September of 2003, MSNBC host Joe Scarborough told viewers that "some of the most powerful media players in America don't want America to succeed in Iraq…. American soldiers have told me that the biggest morale challenge that they are facing is not Saddam and Osama's thugs, but, rather, it's dealing with the biased, slanted reports that they're getting from American news organizations." [i] [1]

In response to claims that reporters were overlooking “good” stories, Newsweek magazine noted that journalists who might actually try and cover what these critics deem the "good" news are discouraged from doing so. They write, "In Baghdad, official control over the news is getting tighter. Journalists used to walk freely into the city’s hospitals and the morgue to keep count of the day’s dead and wounded. Now the hospitals have been declared off-limits and morgue officials turn away reporters who aren’t accompanied by a Coalition escort."[ii]

FAIR points that that “while critics say journalists should be chastised for not reporting on hospitals, the occupation forces are making it more difficult for reporters to actually visit them”. Moreover FAIR suggests “whether they are based in Baghdad or in Washington, journalists are obliged to report the news on the ground, not as "good" or "bad" but as news, regardless of how it fits with the vision the administration would like Americans to see”.[iii]

It would seem that in the light of these situations that allegations of a pure and malicious news media bias are unfounded. With such a pivotal part of America society within its sphere of influence the charge of having no credibility is perplexing at best. The goal of an objective press should always be paramount. Brent Cunningham says “Objectivity has persisted for some valid reasons, the most important being that nothing better has replaced it. And plenty of good journalists believe in it, at least as a necessary goal. Objectivity, or the pursuit of it, separates us from the unbridled partisanship found in much of the European press.”

Why then is there this constant barrage of accusations? Michael Parenti in a Humanist article suggests “For one thing, attacks from the right help create a climate of opinion favorable to the right. Railing against the press's "liberalism" is a way of putting the press on the defensive, keeping it leaning rightward for its respectability, so that liberal opinion in this country is forever striving for credibility within a conservatively defined framework....Their goal is not partial control but perfect control, not an overbearing advantage (which they already have) but total dominance of the communication universe. Anything short of unanimous support for a rightist agenda is treated as evidence of liberal bias. Expecting the press corps to be a press chorus, the conservative ideologue, like any imperious maestro, reacts sharply to the occasionally discordant note.”[iv]

What then can be a solution to this perceived problem? Brent Cunningham suggests, “As we [journalists] descend into this new age of partisanship, our readers need, more than ever, reliable reporting that tells them what is true when that is knowable, and pushes as close to truth as possible when it is not.”

While it is impossible to separate the humanity from the journalist it should be fair to say that the intent of both as one is good. It is then important to examine the fruits of their labor and aim to hold them both up and accountable so that they can fully aid in the process of democracy. We live in important time with important decisions to make. We must be well informed if we are to make wise decisions. It is key to have a reliable source of information in the media to help us along the way.

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[1] One can only hope the biggest moral crasher is the media saying you living in a hellhole, never mind the reality of actually living in one with dieing service men, and little kids with grenades all around you. Damn you liberal media!

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[i] Is media bias filtering out good news from Iraq? (2003, October 23). Fair & Accuracy In Reporting. Retrieved April 25, 2005 from http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=1840

[ii] Ibid

[iii] Ibid

[iv] Parenti, M. (1995 January). The myth of a liberal media. Humanist. 55, Issue 1, 7-10.