Cape Karen
Watching the Dan Rather interview on Larry King the other night, we were given a glimpse into what is happening, behind the scenes, in our mainstream news boardrooms. It seems that journalistic reporting is no longer about good 'journalism' or even good balanced 'reporting' - broadcast news now comes under the heading of "mass entertainment." The good old days, when we could count on our courageous journalists to blow the whistle on corruption, or find them uncovering illegal matters, like the Watergate scandal, may be over.
And that truly scares me.
These days, if a news reporter dares to speak the truth, when and where they find it, or if they attempt to challenge the 'status quo' ~ they know that, by doing do, they could be fired. That's what happened to 44-year veteran CBS reporter, Dan Rather, after he dared to publicly question the dubious military record of President Bush. (And, I think he was right.) From what he said during the Larry King interview, it sounds like if you don't broadcast only what "they" say you can broadcast, and in a way which "they" see fit, then you can just pick up your ball and bat and go home ~ no matter who you are. That controlling, censoring attitude would tend to put a damper on the most enthusiastic, devoted and knowledgable reporter, and it puts a heavy lid on the freedom of the press. The uncovering of an uncomfortable truth, as was done by the New York Times recently, and then denounced as a "breach of national security" by President Bush, is going to quickly become the way of the future, if we let it.
Tell the truth to the masses today . . . and you'll be sorry . . . .
I always felt somewhat comforted to know that good journalists were 'out there' delving into things that we mere spectators didn't have access to; and I always believed that they would be the first to tell us if something sneaky was going on ~ in Washington, or elsewhere. Now, it seems, it will take more than good journalism for them to come out with the truth; it will take bucking the system. By reporting something that the government doesn't want us to know, they're not only putting their jobs on the line, but their reputations as well. They can easily become the victims of a public counter-attack ~ from the President himself.
What does that mean to us? It means that, too often, we will not know about some of the things we have the right to know about. It means that our government could start controlling what the press reports, when the press reports, where the press reports, and how the press reports. It means that, these days, President Nixon could have breathed a big sigh of relief and remained confident that he would never have been caught and impeached.
And, if that isn't frightening ~ then I don't know what is?
That our news is being controlled is not something new. It's happened before - but, not to this extent - and I don't think we can just sit back and accept it. We all have to keep on asking the questions, delving for the truth and encouraging our journalists to keep on reporting whatever they find.
In this age of terrorist attacks and Mideast turbulence, our current government leaders, with the help of their 'spin doctors' (like Creepy Carl Rove, of all people) are coming up with too many creative 'excuses' for allowing government secrecy - secrets which could eventually result in the permanent limitation of some of our Constitutional freedoms. And this is all being done under the guise of "protecting us" from harm. Even as President Bush keeps saying, over and over, in speech after speech, that he believes every country in the world should embrace "our example" of democracy ~ he is quietly violating and eroding some of our most important democratic freedoms, by ignoring Constitutional law and by disavowing courageous and honest reporting.
I think that our journalists are the first line of defense against the potential loss of our rights and democratic freedoms; and I think they all need our on-going support and encouragement, to keep on keeping on.
So, that being said - good luck to 74-year-young, Dan Rather, with his new adventure into HD NET reporting, and his other up-coming activities.
I still think he's one of the best ~ and CBS was just plain stupid to let him go!