PressEthic

With midterm elections fast approaching, ABC's Mark Halperin accuses the "Old Media" of liberal bias, citing 12 different ways that they will cover the elections in a light that favors liberals. This begs the question: do journalists have a right to paint both sides favorably, even when one side has, essentially, dug their own grave?

The book The Cheating Culture that we read in class has made me pay more and more attention to the presence of cheating in our society. What with Enron, Abramoff, and countless other scandals with political ties, more and more people are doubting our leaders -- in government, business, media -- to be honest, ethical decision-makers. Is that so wrong? Or is an increased awareness to cheating leading to more people getting caught...and does that act as a deterrent?

According to this Tuesday’s Washington Post, the United States is deteriorating in the Worldwide Press Freedom Index, put out each year by Reporters without Borders. The United States slipped from last year’s 44th place to 53rd. The rankings are based on a set of 50 questions, pertaining to press freedom, that are asked of media representatives, researchers, human rights activists and other individuals in each country.

Countries where the freedom of the press is notoriously limited, including North Korea, Cuba, Burma and China, did not advance in the rankings. The worst ranking of 168 belongs to North Korea.

This picture and caption reminds me of the fact that America just like any other country would positions itself in the best light in every situation. This photo and caption gives the underlying picture that these women are somehow at fault because they are eating ice cream and enjoying life while others are perishing 600 miles away. The same could be said for us right here in America as there are homeless people on the street sleeping the cold while we sleep in nice apartments with heat.

An article in the Times Style section addresses the issue of Halloween vs. Whore-o-ween in a balanced without losing the personality and therefore opinion of the writer.

The importance of a free YouTube.

You see, he does care

The Daily News ran a story on October 20th about Hillary Clinton's conspicuous choice of wearing a cross. The piece seemed balanced enough, touching upon the religion and preferences of other, potential, presidential candidates. However, in light of discussion in the media about Mitt Romney being a Mormon I wonder if this is the media bellwether of coverage to come.

A journalist's private email, detailing her personal experience in Baghdad and opinions on the war in Iraq, is made public. Her credibility is questioned, but the real question - is she expected to never have formed or expressed an opinion? And would she really be a better journalist if she hadn't?

This morning's Marketplace Report on National Public Radio aired a report about an individual hacking into Apple's online music products and breaking a code that disallowed copying and sharing of music files - illegal activity - and now he faces legal consequences.

The Smoking Gun reported today that Jane Pauley is suing The New York Times for interviewing her under false pretenses. Pauley was under the impression that she was giving an interview for a story on mental health, however, her photo and comments were the featured content of an advertorial that ran for an advertising supplement for a drug company.

MSNBC's Keith Olberman called the Republican Party the "leading terrorist group in this country" on his program this week. If al Qaida is a terrorist group, and suicide bombers are terrorists, and the Bush administration is a terrorist organization, how should the loaded word be used by journalists?

The New York Times published a story on the baffling trend of Americans being wholly unimpressed with the nation's strong economy, apparently forgetting that the news hasn't been very good lately for the middle class, even if Wall Street is smiling.

An article in Slate.com today reported and commented on two Supreme Court judges' recent criticism of the media, or more specifically, court reporters. Apparently, Justices Anthony Scalia and Samuel Alito made the sweeping generalization at a judicial independence discussion that journalists will never be able to cover Supreme Court decisions accurately.

Is Paris pushing Japanese tourists toward mental collapse?