I'm not the first, or probably even the millionth person to notice that there's a growing disparity between those who get their news in print or online and those who rely upon cable and network television news broadcasts.
MediaMatters.org,
Poynter.org,
FAIR.org, and blogs like DailyKos have stepped up to be an excellent source of media criticism. But to access this information,
you have to read. What about the percentage of the country who rely solely upon television's talking heads and pundits to spoon-feed them facts and insights about current events in easily digestible 90-second bites? How can they be reached? How can their experience, knowledge, and perspective be broadened? I say this because at least some of this demographic must intersect with the majority of Americans who support liberal issues. If these people were better-informed and more engaged, would that make a difference?
I combine that challenge with another: how can broadcast media (and to a lesser degree, print media) be effectively pressured and held accountable by
individuals for their laziness or bias? I hate to cite those nuts, or are they just rubes, over at "Focus On the Family" as an example, but they certainly do have a machine that goes in action when they see something "morally" objectionable. Could this be adapted, more constructively? FAIR and Media Matters are each halfway there, it would seem. FAIR has most of the engine, and Media Matters has the depth/breadth due to their volunteer monitors. Neither organization gets enough attention from the press or individuals, it seems, although David Brock has made some terrific inroads.
I'd love to see a setup in conjunction with Media Matters or FAIR where somehow action can be automated: see the absurd broadcast, point out the factual inaccuracies, email the network, its affiliates, its ownership, and its advertisers. Something consistent and effective that gets attention without other distractions. Something that's less "inside the beltway," that adds more voices to the mix.
Mobilizing individuals to hold media more accountable for errors and bias could nicely augment existing progressive actions. Somehow, we have to fight back against the mass hypnosis achieved by FOX, the lesser but still problematic networks, CNN and MSNBC, and print "friends" (!) Time, WSJ and others.
As a side note, I have to mention that at least some of the errors we see, at least those in print media, are as much a result of laziness or lack of editorial resources as they are due to bias. My personal experience in marketing/pr at an utterly innocuous company has confirmed this. The sheer number of factual errors and misquotes from a simple press release or interview and the duplication of those errors via wire services have taught me to question just about everything I read... Again, I distinguish this from the overwhelmingly pundit-, celebrity-, and corporate-controlled television medium, where I must regularly doff my tinfoil hat.
Sorry to say this is more of a musing than a breaking news story or constructive call to action. But I'm a newbie. I'll work on it.