Journalism in Jeopardy
Jody Hawkins
Issue date: 2/26/10 Section: Journalism
It's no secret that journalism in the United States is in a state of chaos. The American people are not happy with the quality and content of the news. In fact, Americans' opinion of the accuracy of news stories is at its lowest level in 20 years, according to a Pew Research Centers survey in 2009.
What's so troubling is that Americans don't seem to be concerned.
One of the many ways we get our journalism today is by newspapers. Unfortunately, newspapers are cutting staff and closing their doors at an alarming rate: almost 34,000 jobs have been lost since 2007 according to Erica Smith, journalist and founder of the Paper Cuts blog.
We saw this hit home when our own Seattle PI closed its print publication after 146 years in business, laying off more than 160 employees last March.
In a 2009 memorial address, President Obama explained the importance of journalism in our country, saying our nation's future relies on "honest, objective, meticulous reporting [that] is so vital to our democracy and our society."
And yet, a look at CNN's top 10 headlines for the 24 hours following Tiger Woods big press conference last Friday, shows nothing that could be construed as vital to our democracy.
Headlines include, "Guy Bulldozes own home," "Tiger Woods Full Apology," "Dog Saves missing girl's life," "Deer crashes into car," and "Friend charged with lottery winner's murder," In fact, Woods nailed three of the top ten slots. According to Bloomberg.com, "the New York stock exchange volume fell to about one million shares and shot to about 6 million shares in the minutes before and after Woods' speech." So many people stopped to watch that it affected the stock market, unbelievable!
In their book, Understanding America: The Anatomy of an Exceptional Nation, authors Peter H. Schuck and James Q. Wilson explain, "Unless Americans gain a sophisticated understanding of the nations' political institutions, cultures, and policies, they will be poorly positioned to think and act as effective citizens."
What's so troubling is that Americans don't seem to be concerned.
One of the many ways we get our journalism today is by newspapers. Unfortunately, newspapers are cutting staff and closing their doors at an alarming rate: almost 34,000 jobs have been lost since 2007 according to Erica Smith, journalist and founder of the Paper Cuts blog.
We saw this hit home when our own Seattle PI closed its print publication after 146 years in business, laying off more than 160 employees last March.
In a 2009 memorial address, President Obama explained the importance of journalism in our country, saying our nation's future relies on "honest, objective, meticulous reporting [that] is so vital to our democracy and our society."
And yet, a look at CNN's top 10 headlines for the 24 hours following Tiger Woods big press conference last Friday, shows nothing that could be construed as vital to our democracy.
Headlines include, "Guy Bulldozes own home," "Tiger Woods Full Apology," "Dog Saves missing girl's life," "Deer crashes into car," and "Friend charged with lottery winner's murder," In fact, Woods nailed three of the top ten slots. According to Bloomberg.com, "the New York stock exchange volume fell to about one million shares and shot to about 6 million shares in the minutes before and after Woods' speech." So many people stopped to watch that it affected the stock market, unbelievable!
In their book, Understanding America: The Anatomy of an Exceptional Nation, authors Peter H. Schuck and James Q. Wilson explain, "Unless Americans gain a sophisticated understanding of the nations' political institutions, cultures, and policies, they will be poorly positioned to think and act as effective citizens."
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