Deafness Begets Deference
"Tragically, Journalism schools’ classroom surrender to the socially progressive “woke” agenda groomed the Selfie-Set students to reflexively appreciate the primacy of deference to “elected leaders”, socially outspoken ‘celebrities”, any approved “expert” who would parrot the popular narrative. Skepticism is so Murrow and Cronkite."
Journalism’s death, June 1, 1980, went unnoticed, overshadowed by the debut of Ted Turner’s CNN, the first television channel to offer 24-hour news coverage. Even journalists themselves who labored in the broadcast and print news media vineyards were blinded by this new News light. I remember it well. I was there, part of the “original cast”. My future wife, a graduate of the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse, worked as a writer and producer there several years later.
Back then, the real journalists who came to CNN, many veterans of other networks and other wars, still plied their craft, free from the shackles of the old timers still ensconced in the Big Three broadcast networks. Over-the-air broadcasting was ubiquitous; paying for cable seemed quaint. Satellite dishes, though, became the ‘state flower’ in rural areas across the county where reception was poor to non-existent. Cable and Satellite delivered programming was the dawn of a whole new day. Unfortunately, for the integrity of the News, the new 24/7 programming begat the 24/7 News Cycle Monster that required constant feeding and attention. While it provided the public with a new service, there weren’t enough qualified journalists to fill all the anchor chairs and reporting gigs that sprang up around the country. The qualifications for those positions, normally filled by bona fide Journalism School grads, began to slip. Radio’s “rip ‘n’ readers” found gigs in the new and glamorous TV field. Mildly disgruntled hires discovered ‘the hours were long but the pay was bad’; nevertheless, being “on TV” added credibility that was dying quickly on the Radio News side. Ultimately, ‘More Music, Less Talk’ was the death knell for radio’s dependable ‘top of the hour’ newscasts. Those who could find their way to CNN and other cable outlets in need of their talent and experience.
Time passed and cable programming matured; “being on TV” became an even bigger ego boost than radio’s “On the Air”. Recognition by an adoring public is mainlining Narcissism to the Blow-Dried Set. News content began its long journey into ignominy as bona fide Journalists retired (or aged out of demo appeal). Quality curricula at “better” Journalism Schools became more and more anemic as social issues, the precursor to ‘Wokeness’. morphed into “hard news and commentary”.
Like aggressive cancer, ‘commentary’ soon dwarfed ‘news; subjective ‘opinion’ stifled objective analysis; progressive content replaced factual stories. Objective analysis was lost to the progressive agenda imposed by liberal corporate owners appeasing equally progressive advertisers. The Corporate-Media Complex was born.
Tragically, Journalism schools’ classroom surrender to the socially progressive “woke” agenda groomed the Selfie-Set students to reflexively appreciate the primacy of deference to “elected leaders”, socially outspoken ‘celebrities”, any approved “expert” who would parrot the popular narrative. Skepticism is so Murrow and Cronkite. Result: intellectual deafness, spineless, gutless, brainless (but attractive) ‘news reporters’, finding themselves positioned to ask insightful questions of a reluctant individual (see politician), they are silent. Even those with some gumption lack the basic ‘book learning’ in Economics, World and American History, US Government, Business and other ‘real world’ disciplines to counter the obfuscation or outright lies they’re given. Their deafness leads to deference to the power of the personality over the pursuit of truth, thus adding to the ignorance of the public- the opposite of the mission statement of a Free Press.
Most notably, Peter Doocy, FOX News, is a singular, consistent exception. Yet, without a White House Press Briefing Room full of Peter Doocys, this and subsequent administrations will have little problem keeping embarrassing State and personal “secrets” secret. As Best-Selling author and commentator, James Bovard noted in a recent podcast, until public concern reaches critical mass, news organizations and politicians will feel little pressure to act differently while John Q. Public’s ignorance is increased exponentially.
Back then, the real journalists who came to CNN, many veterans of other networks and other wars, still plied their craft, free from the shackles of the old timers still ensconced in the Big Three broadcast networks. Over-the-air broadcasting was ubiquitous; paying for cable seemed quaint. Satellite dishes, though, became the ‘state flower’ in rural areas across the county where reception was poor to non-existent. Cable and Satellite delivered programming was the dawn of a whole new day. Unfortunately, for the integrity of the News, the new 24/7 programming begat the 24/7 News Cycle Monster that required constant feeding and attention. While it provided the public with a new service, there weren’t enough qualified journalists to fill all the anchor chairs and reporting gigs that sprang up around the country. The qualifications for those positions, normally filled by bona fide Journalism School grads, began to slip. Radio’s “rip ‘n’ readers” found gigs in the new and glamorous TV field. Mildly disgruntled hires discovered ‘the hours were long but the pay was bad’; nevertheless, being “on TV” added credibility that was dying quickly on the Radio News side. Ultimately, ‘More Music, Less Talk’ was the death knell for radio’s dependable ‘top of the hour’ newscasts. Those who could find their way to CNN and other cable outlets in need of their talent and experience.
Time passed and cable programming matured; “being on TV” became an even bigger ego boost than radio’s “On the Air”. Recognition by an adoring public is mainlining Narcissism to the Blow-Dried Set. News content began its long journey into ignominy as bona fide Journalists retired (or aged out of demo appeal). Quality curricula at “better” Journalism Schools became more and more anemic as social issues, the precursor to ‘Wokeness’. morphed into “hard news and commentary”.
Like aggressive cancer, ‘commentary’ soon dwarfed ‘news; subjective ‘opinion’ stifled objective analysis; progressive content replaced factual stories. Objective analysis was lost to the progressive agenda imposed by liberal corporate owners appeasing equally progressive advertisers. The Corporate-Media Complex was born.
Tragically, Journalism schools’ classroom surrender to the socially progressive “woke” agenda groomed the Selfie-Set students to reflexively appreciate the primacy of deference to “elected leaders”, socially outspoken ‘celebrities”, any approved “expert” who would parrot the popular narrative. Skepticism is so Murrow and Cronkite. Result: intellectual deafness, spineless, gutless, brainless (but attractive) ‘news reporters’, finding themselves positioned to ask insightful questions of a reluctant individual (see politician), they are silent. Even those with some gumption lack the basic ‘book learning’ in Economics, World and American History, US Government, Business and other ‘real world’ disciplines to counter the obfuscation or outright lies they’re given. Their deafness leads to deference to the power of the personality over the pursuit of truth, thus adding to the ignorance of the public- the opposite of the mission statement of a Free Press.
Most notably, Peter Doocy, FOX News, is a singular, consistent exception. Yet, without a White House Press Briefing Room full of Peter Doocys, this and subsequent administrations will have little problem keeping embarrassing State and personal “secrets” secret. As Best-Selling author and commentator, James Bovard noted in a recent podcast, until public concern reaches critical mass, news organizations and politicians will feel little pressure to act differently while John Q. Public’s ignorance is increased exponentially.
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