International Law

It's about time that most mainstream journalists admitted they are Democrats.

That argument comes not from some rabid right-winger but from Mika Brzezinski, the co-host of "Morning Joe" and the daughter of Jimmy Carter's national security adviser.

In an interview with WNBC's Julie Menin, Brzezinski, who's promoting her book "All Things At Once," says it's time to "stop pretending. . . . Every journalist should tell us what their political affiliation is," and which candidates they have voted for.

Denizens of the MSM try to be objective, she says, but have "got a liberal point of view. The balance is not there." Otherwise, viewers can be "duped."

While her proposal may seem "way out there," Brzezinski says, "we've got to be honest." Speaking of news people on television, she says, "do they have no brains? Do they absolutely, positively have no opinions?"

I have a bit more confidence than Mika in the ability of many (but not all) of my colleagues to keep their opinions out of their work. And her argument that this lack of transparency has fueled the extreme movements on both sides isn't terribly persuasive. ("That's why we have Fox," she says. And MSNBC prime time?)

But it's an interesting argument nonetheless.

I actually think is a compelling argument. If the reader or viewer knew the political affiliation of the journalist, they would be able to view his or her reporting through that prism, allowing them to decide how much weight to place upon the viewpoint of that journalist.