Ink Inc. Media Relations/PR

Dick Grove

Good Journalism and Racism

07.26.10

Where truth and justice become as incompatible as oil and water…

It’s a sad state of affairs when the most truthful bit of reporting is now coming from the Opinion and Op-Ed pages rather than the news side of the media.  “The Shirley Sherrod Affair” as it has become known, has highlighted once again two continuing truths in our society…racism with all its ugly connotations still lingers near the surface within this country’s fabric, and…the once proud news media has lost its soul to rumor, innuendo, and its own version of “gotcha politics.”  Somewhere Walter Cronkite and David Brinkley are rolling over.

Frank Rich in his New York Times column, Op-Ed Columnist:  There’s a Battle Outside and It Is Still Ragin’ said it best, “…we reached a new low last week. What does it say about America now, and where it is heading, that a racial provocateur, wielding a deceptively edited video, could not only smear an innocent woman but make every national institution that touched the story look bad? The White House, the N.A.A.C.P. and the news media were all soiled by this episode. Meanwhile, the majority of Americans, who believe in fundamental fairness for all, grapple with the poisonous residue left behind by the many powerful people of all stripes who served as accessories to a high-tech lynching.”

What a debacle…but it’s one that was bound to happen. People are quick to assume speculation for facts especially with today’s ability to put edited video’s up on YouTube and amateur “i-journalism” becoming a real news source to many news agencies in these recessionary times. And what is most disturbing is news agencies taking this edited video and its “summation” without really doing their due diligence as journalists. What ever happened to fact checking before reporting?  Just because it is online doesn’t mean it is credible…really?  However, it is almost like a feeding frenzy takes over in the media and sensationalism precedes the truth today. What’s perhaps most disturbing is that the news agencies know this, but many, particularly in the broadcast arena where the 24/7 news cycle dominates and dictates, have purposely set aside good journalism for silly showmanship, ratings, and “gotcha politics.”

In my office I have a TV tuned to one of the cable news channels all day…but with the sound off and closed captions filling the void. This allows me to notice a potentially impactful story without being verbally accosted.  Recently on a road trip I tried just the opposite.  I listened, without visuals…without the faces of the anchors and endless pundits…to the same cable broadcasts on satellite radio for an extended period.  I don’t recommend this for those that care about journalism as it once was.  Rather than using the extended time of a 24-hour cycle to develop any stories in depth or with clarity, the networks have sunk to an endless fifteen to twenty minute repetition of the same headline often based on speculation or rumor or sound bite, and usually preceded by a promo prior to a commercial break based on the same rumor or speculation…seldom on verified facts.

Is it really any wonder that Shirley Sherrod’s heartfelt speech or her own esteemed background in the Civil Rights movement was compressed and regurgitated as a five-second cable news promo of “What Racism Looks Like.”

Some might say that as a PR professional, I have to take at least some of the blame for turning broadcast journalism into quick sound bites and authoritative pundits crowding our airways.  Perhaps, but I’m just old fashioned enough to know I prefer, and our clients greatly prefer, a story in-full, fleshed out, with details and facts checked.  Even in this egalitarian age where everyone can be heard, read, and even seen on the Internet…equal and heard doesn’t always mean correct.

Categories: Grove Report

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