20702: Hess: Re: 20683: (Chamberlain) re: 20676: Antoine: Re: Latortue praises rebels ... (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: DougRHess@aol.com

Greg Chamberlain wrote:

"The factual mistakes in the AP story cited are inexcusable, but it would be
unfair (and inaccurate) to say they are frequent."

I have to disagree. Setting aside the front page splashy stories about
journalists fabricating evidence, my own experience with journalists (on human
rights, voting rights, welfare, etc.) is that they often are in a big hurry and get
many more things wrong than I would have thought before I became involved in
public affairs. I've often seen paragraphs summarizing policy statements,
evaluations or programs that would get a big F in any graduate level course, even
if the assignment was to write about a policy or program for the general
public.  This gets both better and worse as you move away from the larger outlets.
Worse in that you get people with less experience and competence, but
sometimes better because you find people who have the time to work on a story more
carefully.

That said, I do no buy into the "all media staff are corporate lackeys" type
of argument, and I agree that many on the far, far left write in a comic book
fashion (or like they are in some hotheaded political revelation seminar in
college, which is even worse). Nonetheless, to take once example, the Pacifica
stories, while not offering a critical review of Aristide's government that
press should, have brought out stories that the mainstream media haven't. That
makes it an important part of the total mix.

Doug Hess
Ph.D. Student,
School of Public Policy & Administration,
George Washington University

Home address:
2114 N St., NW Apt. 23
Washington, DC 20037
202-955-5869
(cell 202-276-4807)