The American people should be able to count on the media to deliver balanced coverage of the most important events affecting their well-being. No matter what organization puts out a report, it is fair to say that it should be an unbiased account of the truth. When possible, a reputable news source should give the facts and leave opinions to the pundits. Sadly, that is not the case.
Sinclair Broadcasting Group Inc., a company whose several local media outlets throughout the country include Madison's Fox affiliate, recently announced plans to air a so-called documentary on all 62 of its television stations portraying John Kerry's anti-Vietnam War remarks as a major factor in the terrible treatment prisoners of war received during that war. The piece, entitled \Stolen Honor: Wounds That Never Heal,"" is the brainchild of Carlton Sherwood, a Vietnam veteran who also happens to have worked for President Bush and written for the ultra-conservative Washington Times. Democrats from around the country charge that it is nothing more than pro-Bush propaganda. Yet Sinclair plans to preempt its primetime programming for what they are calling a special news report.
Unfortunately, this is not the only instance of media outlets distorting the actual picture of an event to achieve a political end. The trend started with the success of Fox News, whose self-proclaimed ""fair and balanced"" reporting features an unfairly unbalanced number of Republican pundits. Newspapers soon followed suit; where liberal or conservative bias had been evident only on the editorial pages, it began to turn up quite frequently in news stories as well. Michael Moore has made millions making documentaries supporting a left-wing agenda that even he has admitted are not totally based in fact, yet he is a respected voice among liberals in this country. And just last month, CBS anchor Dan Rather reported that he had proof Bush had skipped his National Guard duties; that ""proof"" was a memo later proven to have been forged.
Skewed media coverage has led to distorted perceptions of the truth. As fair reporting becomes less commonplace, more people are prone to adopting opinions from the talking heads on television into their own view of the world. It has gotten so bad that 18- to 24-year-olds in this country, the number one source of current events is Comedy Central's ""The Daily Show,"" which has claimed to be a ""fake news show"" on numerous occasions.
Furthermore, each unreliable or biased story gives journalism itself a bad name. It has gotten to the point where people need to look at a half-dozen news sources each day to be sure they see all sides of an issue.
Moore is trying to air his blockbuster anti-Bush film ""Fahrenheit 9/11"" on network television the night before Election Day to combat the message of ""Stolen Honor."" But two wrongs do not make a right. From The Daily Cardinal to The New York Times, news coverage should be just that-coverage of the news.
