IN THE NEWS
This excellent editorial from the Louisville Courier Journal is a must-read item--especially for all the Big Name Journalists who seem to have lost their ethics, or their minds, during the last couple of years. Sure, it's tough to do the right thing sometimes, as the author describes vividly when she recounts what it was like to interview Iraqi guerrillas. But that's just the job.
Every time there's a heated guerrilla conflict that the United States deems important, it seems the press replays the same tragic-comic script. Some journalists do outstanding work; some skate by; and others fail utterly. There are many types of failures, from reporters who believe every word the insurgents say, to others who believe everything the US and allied governments claim. Nearly all of them have very little idea about the nature of guerrilla warfare. Their coverage may be accurate, but they're looking at the wrong things. We've seen this pattern in Vietnam, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Somalia, and now in Iraq.
Therefore, it's important to elevate the good journalists into as much prominence as possible. They deserve to be role models for the rest, especially since the iron-clad standards of good reporting have weakened and warped in the last decade. James LeMoyne was my number one guy in the press during the civil war in El Salvador. Today, we have Molly Bingham, bless her.
It's sensitive and dangerous for journalist nowadays.
Posted by: law websites | 04/20/2011 at 22:24