Ben Wolfgang writing at the Washington Times has reported on President Obama’s focus of late to keep cozy with top executives of major newspapers.
Obama visits with top newspaper executives raise questions about media fairness
As part of the reportage Wolfgang sought comments from a journalism specialist we imagine in pursuit of unbiased objectivity.
Seriously dude? The publisher of the New York Times limits his role to business decisions??
Readers were to be brought down to the real world by John Watson, director of the journalism division at American University who Wolfgang quotes uncritically,.
“At the same time, however, a distinction must be drawn between the business leaders at an individual media outlet and the reporters who work beneath them, says John Watson, director of the journalism division at American University.
“Here’s a news flash for you: The people who own newspapers and the people who publish newspapers aren’t journalists. They’re business people,” Mr. Watson said. “Owners and publishers aren’t journalists, even though they own and employ journalists. It’s different.”
Well Mr. Watson, here’s another “news flash” for you:
Who do you think hires the editors? And do you think those “business leaders” go out and look for editors who reflect the opposite of their views? And do those editors, who hire the “journalists” try to find those similarly opposed to their views? Of course not. When Ms. Junck, Chairman and CEO of Lee Enterprises orders a search for an editor of one of Lee’s newspapers, do you think, in reviewing the journalistic background and experiences of candidates, they have no idea of or interest in the viewpoints reflected in their past news coverages, civic involvements, and news gathering and dissemination philosophies?
When internal promotions are made , do you think Lee’s “business leaders” have no interest in the style and direction of candidates’ past work?
No? Well, have you looked at the St. Louis Post Dispatch or the Quad City Times? If one cannot discern any similarity in the positions these papers take, on a daily basis, or that their coverage slants significantly in the liberal direction, in our opinion, maybe you’re not looking objectively enough.
I would suggest a couple of week’s worth of reading QC Times editorials might give you a flavor of the paper’s ideological bent much more accurately than their own protestations about their objectivity in news coverage. DLH
