Propaganda & Mass Persuasion: 04/05/2009 - 04/12/2009

Tuesday, April 07, 2009

Hustling For The Story


In our daily viewing of television, our opinions about the media can vary from minute to minute. Whether it is the media discussing the legal problems that Chris Brown is dealing with or the analyzing and scrutinizing of the economic plan being pushed by Timothy Geithner, the media serves an important role as the chief disseminator of information for the public. One question that we as the public should ask is what are lengths would the media go to secure a story and would they try to push the line of authority.
We recognize that when it comes to news stories involving governments especially the U.S. Government, the media does what every takes to get information especially when they're being blocked. The following from the book, Second Front, illustrates the media response to being blocked from getting information for the U.S. Government:
"Just two bureau chiefs saw fit to lodge serious objections to the Pentagon's new restrictions. Chuck Lewis of Hearst Newspapers wrote to Williams that Phase III was an "oxymoron," and Howell Raines of The New York Times complained that it "flies in the face" of the "agreement" reached at the meeting on November 28. As for "security review," Lewis said he was "sorry" to see it and Raines sarcastically called it "an innovation to which no one agreed" (29).

This snippet shows how defiant the media can be all in the name of a news story. However the media might do more harm than good trying to get the information. I understand the need for transparency when it comes to our government but they should make sure that their actions do not enrage the government in which they might consider some forms of censorship.