Gates and Media
(CNN special takes advantage of the timelines of the Gates arrest)
This story is a prime example of how publicity works and which major players are needed for a story to get ‘legs.’ When the story first broke, headlines about the arrest of a prominent African-American scholar of Harvard read something like, “Harvard Professor Arrested At Home.” As details emerged, a charged word was thrown in: racism. The Boston Globe made the story into a feature and then stated in their by-line “Racial talk swirls with Gates arrest.”
While race may have been an important factor for this case overall, what if race was never mentioned to begin with? Or would this story still have made news if the roles were reversed (ie black cop and white defendant)? It is hard to say, but it is clear we are all still very racially sensitive. That being said, when media outlets use words like ‘racism’ and ‘hate-crimes,’ we need to make sure that they are not only reporting accurately and fairly, but also not creating hype out of nothing.
Is this a nothing story? Well, not necessarily. It clearly demonstrates that there is room for discussion, at the very least. But when charged words enter our media, they quickly gain traction. At the time of this writing, CNN and The Boston Globe both featured a Gates related story, and for both, it was the top read story of the day (so far). It is also no coincidence that both outlets have been hosting racial talks and debates, all with increased viewership and readership.
(Who really won here? Answer: The Media | Courtesy: demotiximages.com )
Whether you agree that this story is evidence of racism, or whether you believe this is just another overblown story, it matters little. The media has carved a niche in the story and will exploit every angle possible. Perhaps Gates himself had the most to contribute in making this story larger than life.
Controversial civil rights leaders, Rev. Al Sharpton and Rev. Jesse Jackson, immediately released statements condemning said incidents, on behalf of their friend, Gates. Next, an interview with his daughter, titled, “My Daddy, the Jailbird,” where Ms. Gates indeed questions her father by starting with “Daddy.” And now, a special appearance on said CNN special where Gates will be talking directly to Americans nationwide tonight.
Again, I would like to remind my audience that I have no strong opinion on the arrest of Gates. But when you assemble an all-star cast of biased and non-credible sources (ie personal friends and family members), you look questionable.
So, will you tune in tonight to see this Harvard professor tell us why he is about to sue the city of Cambridge? Do you believe that this story deserves this kind of attention? Or does it deserve even more attention?
I would love to hear from you on this issue, but please realize, I’m not going to debate the semantics of what actually transpired. I’m more interested in how you think media influences us on these hot topic issues. Click the link below to leave a comment!
ABC - Accountability, Bias and Credibility
Accountable: adjective - (of a person, organization, or institution) required or expected to justify actions or decisions; responsible
Accountable: The word embodies so much to so many, especially right now. When we elected our new administration into office, we were hoping for more transparency. We as everyday citizens should, ideally, track what was going on with these mega bailouts.
Sure, Recovery.gov was created to give us fun charts and graphs to digest, but will the average American interpret this data? Hardly. Instead, millions turn to the daily papers, hourly newscasts, or the never-ending buzz from the net. The only problem is the political or economic bias that the organizations put out.
For example, News Corp. (ie Fox News) owns both the Wall Street Journal and Myspace; one represents the ultimate in trade information, the other, a hub for networking (and now musicians). Between these two outlets alone, News Corp. can affect millions of people, and more importantly, their opinions.
In fact, Fox News has constantly tried to cry foul against Democrats while lifting up Republicans. Case in point? The recent South Carolina scandal showed an unfaithful Democrat governor who was deeply regretful of his extra-marital affairs. One problem: the governor was a Republican! Fox News has a history of labeling the wrong party unto a name, but especially after a scandal, when magically they become Democrats!
(Wow - he switched to the Dem. party right after this scandal, huh? Sneaky Fox / Courtesy: Media Matters)
Is there any hope for us to get unbiased news then? If the government has an agenda, and if private outlets have been trying to sway the masses with their bias, how can we be sure of our coverage?
We can’t, really. But, we can invest our time into researching a claim. Don’t be so quick to judge superficially and make sure you know the source of any story. If an outlet has a reputation for a bias, especially one you don’t agree with, stop supporting the outlet with your viewership.
But there is hope. Some independent and unbiased folks have tried to take matters into their own hands. Case in point, CapitalWords.org - a website dedicated to showcasing conversations in our capital, while documenting who said it and what their record is.
(CapitalWords.org: Here’s what Massachusetts’ politicians have been talking about in July)
I recently found out that my local representative, Rep. John Tierney - MA (D), has one of the lowest scores in terms of him actually speaking. I followed up and sent an email and asked why he wasn’t speaking more. While I never found an answer, I did find he moved off of the lowest speaking category. Did a public outcry emerge because he wasn’t walking up to the podium enough? Doubtful. But imagine if millions of Americans actually held their public officials accountable in such a way that we could track what they did (and, no, not just political tweets either).
In brief, we need more accountability. Far too often, we are mislead by slanderous rumors or just plain false information. We need more third party outlets who adhere to the integrity of the traditional American journalist.
It leaves me wondering: with all these new bailout jobs, why didn’t we fund that kind of position? We need to get back to basics - back to our ABC’s: Accountability, avoiding Bias, and creating Credibility again.