Wizards of Media Oz

Wizards of Media Oz: Behind the Curtain of Mainstream News, Norman Solomon and Jeff Cohen, Common Courage Press, 1997


The conservative Heritage Foundation is the most widely quoted think tank in the US media, not because they do such good work, but because they are masters at giving the press what it wants. To bolster claims of a "liberal media", conservatives usually point to a slight Democratic leaning on the part of reporters' personal preferences. But, if a reporter consistently quotes from conservatives in their stories, isn't that more important than their personal choices? Politicians go on and on about how big government is destroying America; big media and big corporations, on the other hand, seem to be good and lead to more choices for the public.

Each subject in this book is given only a couple of pages, so there isn't much chance for details. As an introduction to these issues, however, this book is first-rate and is highly recommended.Here is another collection of syndicated newspaper columns from Solomon and Cohen, both associated with the media watch group FAIR (Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting). In it, they explore a whole host of contemporary political and media issues.