I get scores of press releases every day, most of which go speedily on their way to the trash bin. But I got one today that was so outrageously wrong that it caught my eye. It was about a book called "Stop the Presses! The Inside Story of the New Media Revolution."
There definitely is a media revolution going on now -- in the way the news is delivered to readers. The internet is reshaping the way we get our information, news included. But that's not what the author, Joseph Farah, is writing about. He's writing about "an invasion of the newsroom by radical activist groups posing as high-minded professional journalism associations."
Farah is the founder of WorldNetDaily.com, an "independent" news site that has reprinted some of my news stories over the years. The press release states that Farah is "a veteran newspaper editor and internet pioneer" and "former top editor at major-market newspapers."
He says he witnessed radical activist groups' takeover of the newsroom of establishment papers, citing the Society for Environmental Journalism and the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association as examples.
Well, I've got news for Mr. Farah: There is no such takeover of America's newsrooms.
True, I work for a midwestern paper that is fairly conservative compared to some of the big coastal papers -- a reflection of the demographics that it serves. But I read a lot of newspapers and I read the trade journals and I know that journalists make a concerted effort to be fair in their reporting. Nobody is completely unbiased, it's just not humanly possible. But there are checks and balances in the news business, both internal and external. And the vast majority of journalists know that their job is not to promote an agenda, but to report the news as objectively as possible. There are several layers of editing before an article gets into print -- assignment editors, assistant city editors, city editors, copy editors, managing editors, assistant managing editors, executive editors... a biased story would have to sneak past the sharp eye of a slew of media professionals. Few people would even try it, and if they did it more than once they'd likely be fired. And if a bias slips in by accident, that also would be edited out before it hits the presses.
If, however, you think the whole system is involved in a conspiracy, then nothing I say here will convince you.
In addition to the internal mechanisms, newspapers also are held in check by readers. The public votes with their wallets when they plunk down their 50 or 75 cents or $1.50 to read a daily newspaper.
If a newspaper gets too far from the middle, the readers stop buying it.
One other way readers keep newspapers in check is through the letters to the editor columns. The public has their own soapbox to express themselves in print -- an outlet that is not available, generally speaking, via television or radio news shows.
So despite the assertions that hordes or radical activists are manipulating the news, you get a pretty straight scoop every day when you pick up a newspaper. Which is still a bargain at less than a buck in most cases. What else can you get for a dollar these days besides a Super Big Gulp or lottery ticket, neither of which will do you much good...
Stop the Presses, maybe. But don't buy Farah's book, he's just preying on the public's fears and insecurities.
Sylvania, Ohio .. April 11, 2007