When it comes to accurate reporting of news, this screen cap exemplifies why we have come to call them ‘skews media’ rather than news media. It has become increasingly apparent that in what used to be called journalism, accuracy in reporting and editing have been flushed.
Bill, given the example story, can you provide a sample of what you would consider to be proper journalism? I confess that I never had a journalism class and also that my speech is frequently laden with adjectives that offer unnecessary yet colorful enhancements to any narrative.
Comment by Dan Gookin — February 28, 2016 @ 12:50 pm
Dan,
In the first sentence the writer used the word “Mass.” Catholic churches celebrate mass; Baptist churches do not.
Comment by Bill — February 28, 2016 @ 1:43 pm
Not to quote “Wikipedia” too hard, anyone can use the term “mass”, Lutheran, and Methodist do.
As far as investigative journalism, I believe it’s been dead since about Watergate time.
Comment by Mike Teague — February 29, 2016 @ 10:37 am
Mike,
Also Episcopalians, but the issue was with Fox News incorrectly referring to that particular Baptist church’s Sunday service as “Mass.” That was just sloppy fact non-checking, and both the writer and the editor or producer should have caught it. It appears someone did, because in its subsequent reporting, Fox dropped “Mass.”
The Washington Post’s Watergate reporting created more public awareness of investigative reporting (a misnomer, since in theory all reporting is investigative). In fact, had the publisher of the Washington Post been almost anyone other than Katharine Graham, the Watergate break-in might well have been forgotten as the third-rate burglary Nixon hoped it would. But Graham had three things going for her: Social prominence, political clout, and she hated Richard Nixon with a passion. Had it not been for the Post’s tenacity, I seriously doubt that Mark Felt would ever have become Deep Throat.
Although Watergate spotlighted investigative reporting, a far more interesting and inspiring case involved the assassination of Arizona Republic reporter Don Bolles in 1976. Bolles was lured into a trap with a tip about an illegal land deal in Arizona involving Senator Barry Goldwater, Representative Sam Steiger, and state Republican Party Chairman Sam Rosenzweig. Bolles showed up to meet the tipster at the appointed place and time, but instead he got a phone call telling him to go to another location. Bolles went back to his car, and when he started the engine, the bomb that had just been planted detonated. Bolles died eleven days later. Bolles had been scheduled to speak at the first annual conference of Investigative Reporters and Editors scheduled to begin just a few days after he died. IRE subsequently published a report about corruption and organized crime in Arizona, called The Arizona Project report.
Comment by Bill — February 29, 2016 @ 11:39 am