Academic

Never Trust Any Media

By Calvin Massey

  If you needed any more reasons to be skeptical of anything reported by the media, consider today's exposure by the New York Times of the elaborate hoax that apaprently convinced a number of news outlets to report that McCain campaign officials had revealed that Sarah Palin didn't know Africa was a continent.   What's worse, even after the hoax had been smoked out, supposed journalism professionals continued to be taken in.   Of course, media skepticism causes me to doubt this Times story, too.  Basically, I start from the presumption that media reporting is at best incomplete, and at worst totally bogus.  Enthusiastic proponents of limiting campaign expenditures might ponder that a principal effect of such measures would be to deliver even more power to the media concerning political campaigns.  Quite aside from "media bias" (a subject for further debate) the sorry record of the media on this small issue gives me scant confidence in the fourth estate as the primary organ of political information.  I prefer paid lies; at least there is no pretense of objectivity and professionalism.      

Full post as published by The Faculty Lounge on November 13, 2008 (boomark / email).