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ORIGINAL RESEARCHDavid Domke US Press credibility at historic lowMedia supply much of the ammunition used against itIn early May, Newsweek magazine reported that some U.S. military had desecrated the Koran at Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba. The White House responded with withering criticism of Newsweek and news media in general, claiming that they were unscrupulously using anonymous sources “to generate negative attacks” on the administration. A Pew Research Center poll released Monday shows U.S. press credibility at historic lows. In early June, 56% of randomly sampled U.S. adults said that “[news] stories and reports are often inaccurate,” an increase from 34% of the public who held this view in 1985. In response, Washington Post political columnist E.J. Dionne wrote: “[T]his particular anti-press campaign is not about Journalism 101. It is about Power 101. It is a sophisticated effort to demolish the idea of a press independent of political parties by way of discouraging scrutiny of conservative politicians in power.” Dionne is right. But his words may be too little, too late. As with most matters in American public discourse these days, conservatives are winning this battle — with the help of media themselves. A Pew Research Center poll released Monday shows U.S. press credibility at historic lows. In early June, 56% of randomly sampled U.S. adults said that “[news] stories and reports are often inaccurate,” an increase from 34% of the public who held this view in 1985. Similarly, 72% of Americans today say news organizations “tend to favor one side” when covering political and social issues, up from 53% two decades ago. And 75% of Americans say news organizations’ reporting is most concerned about “attracting the biggest audience,” while only 19% said it was “keeping the public informed.” Three factors explain such low media credibility. First, Internet blogs and media watchdog groups, representing all sides of the political spectrum, have turned the spotlight on journalists’ actions in much the same way that news media cover other social institutions. Journalists are now held to answer for poor reporting and those relatively rare moments when political bias does intentionally enter mainstream news coverage. In the long run, this scrutiny will be good for news media — but only if they stop making significant, high-profile mistakes in their rush to be the first to publish or broadcast. For example, Newsweek could not verify its reporting of Koran abuses at Guantanamo and was forced to issue a retraction. Two weeks later the military’s own report essentially substantiated the magazine’s claims, but by then it was little more than a footnote to what had become a story about Newsweek. Second, political conservatives have mounted a concerted assault on news organizations, wielding the epithet of “the liberal media.” While such claims have been around since at least the 1950s, research I undertook with academic colleagues shows that this rhetoric increased markedly beginning in the late 1980s. The accusations are used strategically by Republican Party leaders to discredit and stem critical news coverage. This was acknowledged in 1992 by Rich Bond, then chair of the Republican Party, who said, “There is some strategy to it. ... If you watch any great coach, what they try to do is ‘work the refs.’ Maybe the ref will cut you a little slack on the next one.” And GOP strategist William Kristol in 1995 told The New Yorker, “I admit it. The whole idea of the ‘liberal media’ was often used as an excuse by conservatives for conservative failures.” The strategy has worked well. A Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter at a top Midwest newspaper told me not long ago that ideas offered by conservatives are treated with hyper-sensitivity in newsrooms, due to journalists’ fears of accusations of liberal bias. Further, claims of news media as inherently liberal helps Republicans to “inoculate” themselves from press criticism when it does occur, since the source is deemed to be suspect. Finally, since the attacks of September 11, 2001, it is apparent that a growing segment of the U.S. public believes the press should be distinctly pro-American. For example, the Pew data show that 40% of U.S. adults think the press is “too critical of America,” up from 17% in November 2001. Put simply, many Americans see no conflict between simultaneous wishes for press independence and a pro-U.S. perspective. We might call this the “Fox effect.” The Fox News Channel came into existence in 1996 and bills itself as “fair and balanced.” Since September 11 the channel has contained a waving U.S. flag in the television screen’s corner and has unabashedly championed the international and military policies of the Bush administration. The public’s response is clear: Fox surpassed CNN as the ratings leader among cable news channels in late 2001 and has extended its lead in years since. The desire for pro-American news produces this outcome: when news content is critical of U.S. actions, as has been the case in coverage of the war in Iraq in recent months, many Americans become critical of the press, rather than the government. This is the desired outcome by the Bush administration, of course. It is the worst possible outcome for democracy, however. The public is shooting the messenger in this case. It would help if the news media stopped providing ammunition. sign in, or register to email stories or comment on them.
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MORE ORIGINAL RESEARCHBill Berkowitz PERC receives Templeton Freedom Award for promoting 'enviropreneurs'Right Wing foundation-funded anti-environmental think tank grabbing a wider audience for 'free market environmentalism' On the 15th anniversary of Terry Anderson and Donald Leal's book "Free Market Environmentalism" -- the seminal book on the subject -- Anderson, the Executive Director of the Bozeman, Montana-based Property and Environment Research Center (PERC - formerly known as the Political Economy Research Center) spoke in late-January at an event sponsored by Squaw Valley Institute at the Resort at Squaw Creek in California. While it may have been just another opportunity to speak on "free market environmentalism" and not the kickoff of a "victory tour," nevertheless it comes at a time when PERC's ideas are taking root.
Bill Berkowitz Neil Bush of Saudi ArabiaDuring recent visit, President’s brother describes the country as a 'kind of tribal democracy' In late February, only a few days after Saudi Arabia beheaded four Sri Lankan robbers and then left their headless bodies on public display in the capital of Riyadh, Neil Bush, for the fourth time in the past six years, showed up for the country's Jeddah Economic Forum. The Guardian reported that Human Rights Watch "said the four men had no lawyers during their trial and sentencing, and were denied other basic legal rights." In an interview with Arab News, the Saudi English language paper, Bush described the country as "a kind of tribal democracy."
Bill Berkowitz Newt Gingrich's back door to the White HouseAmerican Enterprise Institute "Scholar" and former House Speaker blames media for poll showing 64 percent of the American people wouldn't vote for him under any circumstances Whatever it is that former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has come to represent in American politics, the guy is nothing less than fascinating. One day he's espousing populist rhetoric about the need to cut the costs of college tuition and the next day he's talking World War III. One day he's claiming that the "war on terror" may force the abridgement of fundamental first amendment rights and the next he's advancing a twenty-first century version of his Contract with America. At the same time he's publicly proclaiming how "stupid" it is that the race for the presidency has already started you know that he's trying to figure out how to out finesse Rudy, McCain and Romney for the nomination. And last week, when Fox News' Chris Wallace cited a poll showing that 64 percent of the public would never vote for him, he was quick to blame those results on how unfairly he was treated by the mainstream media back in the day.
Bill Berkowitz American Enterprise Institute takes lead in agitating against IranDespite wrongheaded predictions about the war on Iraq, neocons are on the frontlines advocating military conflict with Iran After doing such a bang up job with their advice and predictions about the outcome of the war on Iraq, would it surprise you to learn that America's neoconservatives are still in business? While at this time we are not yet seeing the same intense neocon invasion of our living rooms -- via cable television's news networks -- that we saw during the run-up to the invasion of Iraq, nevertheless, a host of policy analysts at conservative think tanks -- most notably the American Enterprise Institute -- are being heeded on Iran by those who count - folks inside the Bush Administration.
Bill Berkowitz After six years, opposition gaining on George W. Bush's Faith Based InitiativeUnmentioned in the president's State of the Union speech, the program nevertheless continues to recruit religious participants and hand out taxpayer money to religious groups With several domestic policy proposals unceremoniously folded into President Bush's recent State of the Union address, two pretty significant items failed to make the cut. Despite the president's egregiously tardy response to the event itself, it was nevertheless surprising that he didn't even mention Hurricane Katrina: He didn't offer up a progress report, words of hope to the victims, or come up with a proposal for moving the sluggish rebuilding effort forward. There were no "armies of compassion" ready to be unleashed, although it should be said that many in the religious community responded to the disaster much quicker than the Bush Administration. In the State of the Union address, however, there was no "compassionate conservatism" for the victims of Hurricane Katrina.
Bill Berkowitz Frank Luntz calls Republican leadership in Washington 'One giant whining windbag'On the outs with the GOP, legendary degrader of discourse is moving to California He doesn't make great art; nothing he does elevates the human spirit; he doesn't illuminate, he bamboozles. He has become expert in subterfuge, hidden meanings, word play and manipulation. Frank Luntz has been so good at what he does that those paying close attention gave it its own name: "Luntzspeak."
Bill Berkowitz Spooked by MoveOn.org, conservative movement seeks to emulate liberal powerhouseFueled with Silicon Valley money, TheVanguard.org will have Richard Poe, former editor of David Horowitz's FrontPage magazine as its editorial and creative director As Paul Weyrich, a founding father of the modern conservative movement and still a prominent actor in it, likes to say, he learned a great deal about movement building by closely observing what liberals were up to in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Bill Berkowitz Ward Connerly's anti-affirmative action jihadFounder and Chair of the American Civil Rights Institute scouting five to nine states for new anti-affirmative action initiatives Fresh from his most recent victory -- in Michigan this past November -- Ward Connerly, the Black California-based maven of anti-affirmative action initiatives, appears to be preparing to take his jihad on the road. According to a mid-December report in the San Francisco Chronicle, Connerly said that he was "exploring moves into nine other states."
Bill Berkowitz Tom Tancredo's missionThe Republican congressman from Colorado will try to woo GOP voters with anti-immigration rhetoric and a boatload of Christian right politics These days, probably the most recognizable name in anti-immigration politics is Colorado Republican Congressman Tom Tancredo. Over the past year, Tancredo has gone from a little known congressman to a highly visible anti-immigration spokesperson. "Tancredo has thoroughly enmeshed himself in the anti-immigration movement and with the help of CNN talk show host Lou Dobbs, he has been given a national megaphone," Devin Burghart, the program director of the Building Democracy Initiative at the Center for New Community, a Chicago-based civil rights group, told Media Transparency.
Bill Berkowitz Institute on Religion and Democracy slams 'Leftist' National Council of ChurchesNew report from conservative foundation-funded IRD charges the NCC with being a political surrogate for MoveOn.org, People for the American Way and other liberal organizations If you prefer your religious battles sprinkled with demagoguery, sanctimoniousness, and simplistic attacks, the Institute on Religion and Democracy's (IRD) latest broadside against the National Council of Churches (NCC) certainly fits the bill.
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