Reply #9: Beware half-baked journalism [View All]

Beware half-baked journalism

We've all heard recently of the federal government's attempts to sway public thought by paying commentators to parrot a party line rather than express their own opinions. The government also has been producing propaganda tapes that TV stations in small markets have aired as news, presumably because the segments cost nothing to produce.

When the pundit payola became public knowledge, President George W. Bush denounced the practice, saying, "There needs to be a nice independent relationship between the White House and the press."

Federal press officers, though, since have said that Bush's statement did not apply to "video news releases," because they are factual, politically neutral and useful.

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Yes, language in the federal budget for decades has outlawed using taxpayers' money for such covert propaganda. Yes, the Government Accountability Office has made clear that such releases must identify the source agency.

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In the midst of an insidious, self-serving campaign to discredit the news media by those who want to avoid scrutiny, the public is ill-served by news organizations that succumb to greed and taint not only their own reputations but also undermine confidence in journalists that find such practice reprehensible.