Today a Wall Street Journal article probes whether the CBS hysteria will cause the network news to avoid controversial stories:
Already, there is concern by some observers that CBS's gaffe will cause other networks to think twice about pursuing high-stakes scoops.
"People in the network news organizations who are looking for a rationale to soften up have found it," says Todd Gitlin, a professor at the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University in New York. "They weren't taking too many risks even before this, and they will take even fewer now."
Not to be outdone by the broadcasters, the NYT editorial page telegraphs its
response to CBS's vilification:
...it's a relief to see both the candidates and the electorate focusing on the major issues. For a while it seemed as if extricating the candidates from the morass of their military records was going to be as difficult as extricating American forces from Iraq.
It was sad that Mr. Kerry's commendable war record was clouded by the more outrageous of the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth's attacks, and it was somewhat surprising that Mr. Bush's National Guard service again became a big topic of debate. Voters had pretty well figured out four years ago that the future president's family pulled strings to get him a berth that would keep him out of Vietnam. The evidence that Bush had been at best halfhearted in fulfilling his duty to the Guard was also clear. People figured out how much that mattered to them when they went to the polls in 2000
Hmmm... In their haste to leave behind the service questions, the NYT editorial page simply overlooks the small problem that Bush repeatedly lies about fulfilling his military obligations. If voters have already internalized all the negatives about Bush's service, why would Bush need to lie about it? Times editors also appear unaware that damaging information has come to light since the 2000 election. Some of this information was belatedly presented just last week in the news pages of their very own paper.
Spare us the drivel about wanting to focus on issues. Millions of voters get their information primarily from television -- a medium where perceived character counts far more than candidates' policy positions. And when did the Times decide that a President lying in office isn't an issue? The Times' editors apparently inhabit a time warp where voters only get news from papers and real papers only ponder over heady, serious "issues". If big media continues to run from the Bush service controversy and Kerry loses on account of the false attacks on his service, every media outlet that stepped meekly aside on this story needs to be called out.
The Times and other mainstream outlets are trying to finesse a risky story. They know the president is lying but they desperately don't want to be in the line of fire a la CBS. But with the risk comes the opportunity for both television and print outlets to distinguish themselves. Dan Rather stood up but fell to a largely self-inflicted wound. The editors of Air Force Times, Boston Globe and US News have poked their eyes above the sandbags. Anybody have the guts to call Bush on his lying?
Send some emails and ask how proud they'll be of their reporting if they fail to aggressively report Bush's lying and he slithers into office for another four years:
editorial@nytimes.com
executive-editor@nytimes.com
managing-editor@nytimes.com
washington@nytimes.com
Michael Dobbs: dobbsm@washpost.com
newseditors@wsj.com
onlinenewshour@newshour.org
nightly@nbc.com
ABC News (and ABC Radio News) - Ann Compton, White House Correspondent anncompton@abcnews.com Phone: (202) 222-7287; Fax: (202) 222-7682; Address: 1717 DeSales St NW, Washington, DC 20036
ABC News - Ted Koppel, Anchor & Managing Editor, Nightline ted.koppel@abc.com Phone: (202) 222-7364; Fax: (202) 222-7976; Address: 1717 DeSales St NW, Washington, DC 20036
CNN News - Aaron Brown, Anchor; Managing Editor, NewsNight with Aaron Brown aaron.brown@turner.com Phone: (212) 714-7800; Fax: (212) 714-7935; Address: 5 Penn Plaza, New York, NY 10001
CNN News - Judy Woodruff, Anchor, Inside Politics with Judy Woodruff deirdre.walsh@turner.com Phone: (202) 898-7915; Fax: (202) 515-2853; Address: 820 1st St NE, Washington, DC 20002