Breaking the News

Breaking the News: How The Media Undermine American Democracy, James Fallows, Pantheon Books, 1996

To many people, including James Fallows, the problems with the mainstream media are numerous.

The recent huge growth in TV journalist shows like The McLaughlin Group and The Capital Gang have led to more opportunities for reporters to sound like they know something about all the contemporary issues. Much of their knowledge could have been gained from a couple of quick phone calls to someone who actually knows the subject, and could be no bigger than a soundbite. A permanent spot on such shows can lead to seemingly the ultimate journalistic perk--big lecture fees.

President Clinton's Americorps plan for an extra $10,000 for college was received enthusiastically by the public, but was ridiculed by the press, people who think nothing of spending $4000 per year for their child's kindergarten. The press is less interested in explaining how the latest budget proposal, for instance, will affect ordinary Americans than it is in speculating how it will help Congressional Republicans or hurt the Administration. During campaigns, the media spends more time on which candidate is ahead according to the latest polls than looking at what the candidates are actually saying.

All is not doom and gloom, according to Fallows. Some medium-sized newspapers and TV stations have begun to ask the public what kind of stories they would like, and have responded accordingly. The only complaints to this public-service journalism have come from the media old guard.

This is a very interesting and detailed book on a subject that, like it or not, affects all of us. Well worth reading.