An Open Letter to Journalists
What I want to know (and what you’re ignoring):
1. What exactly is Obama’s health plan. Yeah, I’ve seen the sound bytes. I’ve watched the Daily Show interview. I see the Republicans bitch about it. But what exactly is the plan? You haven’t once talked about the details. If there are none, tell us so!
2. What the hell is going on in Iraq? Obama got elected and suddenly there’s nothing important to report from our first major war since Afghanistan. Which brings me to:
3. What the hell is going on in Afghanistan? The Economist is reporting we’ve had one of the worst months of casualties in the EIGHT YEAR CONFLICT. Why the hell isn’t this a nightly discussion?
4. What the hell is going on with the economy? Ok, ok. Every economist disagrees with every other economist. That still doesn’t explain whether I’m going to have to temp for the next five years. Sure, it’s impossible to tell the future, but for God’s sake at least tell us what the possible outcomes are.
5. How much is the TARP and stimulus money helping? You were all over the debates like a fat kid on chocolate last October. Now the whole thing is treated like an amorphous blob that hangs without our periphery. There MUST be some kind of metric that can determine whether what was enacted EIGHT MONTHS AGO is having an effect.
6. What’s happening in Iran? You’ve had one night of passion with the temporary revolution and now you won’t call her back. Huge things are happening there still; you’d never know by your coverage. Is she not sexy enough for you?
7. Why are you ignoring China? The Uighurs have been rioting against one of our largest trading partners, lenders, and governmental opposites. Why is this almost completely ignored?
You want to save journalism and the newspapers? Start reporting the news, you idiots! I don’t give a damn about Sotomayor. I couldn’t care less about Goldman Sacks. Just explain to me what the hell is happening in the world!
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Tags: financial crisis, media, newspapers, obama, social critique
July 20th, 2009 at 11:34
You’re not giving enough credit where it’s due. Plenty of this stuff has been in The New York Times at one point or another. I’m pretty sure they’ve had a story in there everyday about Iran. China, perhaps not, but that’s not the story right now. But, for the most part, all this stuff is being covered. You have to seek it out. Is it not ironic that in a letter to journalists about their shortcomings you ask what’s going on with violence in Afghanistan — based on an article you read in The Economist? The Economist is as much a part of the American media as the British media. (In fact, they might have more offices here if I recall correctly.)
As for Iraq, yes, there’s been less coverage. But that’s a money issue. It’s extraordinarily expensive to cover Iraq. I read the amount The New York Times spent per month a year ago in a Vanity Fair story a few months back. I don’t remember the amount, but it was astounding. At a time when newspapers don’t have enough resources to cover the home front, spending money on journalists in Iraq isn’t — and should not — be a priority. A paper’s primary concern should be its own backyard (provided it’s not The New York Times, The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal).
What you’re criticizing is the national conversation, not media coverage. And people create the national conversation, not the media. All of it, all your answers, are there, usually on the inside pages of The Times or any of them Big Three papers. They might not be on A1, but if you open and scan the inside, shit’s all there.
And while I might sound like an apologist, I’m certainly not. I think newspapers are pretty much dead. I basically quit them last year. But I routinely hear from a subset of newspaper readers that the reason they’re dying is because they’re becoming less substantial. And that’s completely false. Newspapers have been dying a slow death for a good number of years — even when they were thick, substantial and ascendant.
And last point: A good number of questions you’re asking don’t have black/white answers. I saw a report a week or two ago that said federal officials weren’t sure the stimulus package was working, but they believed state and municipal governments weren’t spending it fast enough.
Also, here’s a link (today) to a bunch of stories that answer some of your questions:
http://www.nytimes.com/pages/world/index.html
And that’s just one day’s coverage!
July 21st, 2009 at 0:30
I actually wrote this rant in response to the Washington Post’s web page which, for three consecutive days, had nothing on the front page except articles about Sotomayor’s hearing. During that same time I caught a glimpse of CNN and Fox on telly and the were talking about the same BS except with less content and more bias. I’m going to have a hard time making rent this month and all they can talk about is how goddamn funny Al Franken is in the Senate.