press critique on 911 coverage

[Doug Millison]

http://www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml?i=20011015&s=massing

"With the news media playing such a pivotal--and questionable--role during
the current crisis, we have asked Michael Massing, a contributing editor at
the Columbia Journalism Review, to comment on the coverage in the coming
weeks. [...] As the nation prepares to go to war, the coverage on TV--the
primary source of news for most Americans--has been appallingly
superficial. Constantly clicking my remote in search of insight, I was
stunned at the narrowness of the views offered, at the Soviet-style
reliance on official and semiofficial sources. On Meet the Press, for
instance, Tim Russert's guests were Colin Powell and (as he proudly
announced) the "four leaders of the United States Congress"--Dennis
Hastert, Richard Gephardt, Trent Lott and Tom Daschle. "How did the events
of September 11 change you?" the normally feisty Russert tremulously asked
each. Seeking wisdom on the question of Why They Hate Us, Barbara Walters
turned to former Bush communications director, now senior White House
counselor, Karen Hughes. "They hate the fact that we elect our leaders,"
Hughes vacuously replied. On NBC, Brian Williams leaned heavily on
failed-drug-czar-turned-TV-consultant Barry McCaffrey ("Americans are
natural fighters," McCaffrey fatuously informed us), while on The Capital
Gang Mark Shields asked former Middle East diplomat Edward Walker, "Can the
antiterrorism coalition really count this time on Saudi Arabia?"

To a degree, such deference reflects TV's customary rallying around the
flag in times of national crisis. Such a stance is understandable; in light
of the enormity of the attack, even atheists are singing "God Bless
America." But the jingoistic displays on TV over the past two weeks--the
repeated references to "we" and "us," the ostentatious sprouting of lapel
flags, Dan Rather's startling declaration that "George Bush is the
President, he makes the decisions and, you know, as just one American, he
wants me to line up, just tell me where"--have violated every canon of good
journalism. They have also snuffed out any whiff of debate and dissent; the
discussion taking place within the Bush Administration is no doubt more
vigorous than that presented on TV.

But there's more than simple patriotism at work here. The thinness of the
coverage and the shallowness of the analysis seem a direct outgrowth of the
networks' steady disengagement from the world in recent years. Since the
end of the cold war, overseas bureaus have been closed, foreign
correspondents recalled and the time allocated to international news
sharply pared. Having thus plucked out their eyes, the networks--suddenly
faced with a global crisis--are lunging about in the dark, trying
desperately to find their footing. [...]"
Doug Millison - Writer/Editor/Web Editorial Consultant
millison at online-journalist.com
www.Online-Journalist.com