All the Fits that's News to Print

David Broder is way full of shit. His diatribe against modern journalist shows more his own problems than the problems in journalism. Jack Shafer hit him as he deserved to be hit in his PressBox site at Slate. Maybe he should accompany Rather to the retirement home. Both have shown bad judgment for someone of their experience.

Broder's column site: http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A49279-2004Sep25?language=printer

Jack Shafer's PressBox site: http//slate.msn.com/id/2107249/

Obviously, I don't have this linking thing down, yet.

Journalism is better today than it has ever been, but that does not mean it could do with some improvements. Is there a liberal bias in the major news media? Yes, but only in the editorial section. Most major news outlets try to be objective when they report what they think is news. Of course, the “thinking” of the reporter or editor is going to be affected by their political leaning, but most consider themselves to be a professional before they consider their feeling from a political point of view.

If a professional journalist cannot be objective, then there is no hope for other professionals. A lawyer cannot represent a client which he thinks is guilty or at fault in some legal situation. Doctors can not treat patient of different political viewpoints. And, it’s not in just the fields which require degrees and certifications.

Any craftsman or tradesman, who approaches his work in a professional manner, cannot objectively work on the possessions of someone who is associated with political party not of his liking. Career soldiers can not serve a leader in whom they do not believe, orders or no orders. Clerks, who consider themselves as professional – and there are many that do, cannot be trusted to file the material of someone who has a different political opinion. Professionalism is an attitude not a position and objectivity begins with Journalism 101 or the first day on the job those who learn by doing and continues for as long as the journalist is willing to learn.

Liberal bias? You know, if you get far enough to the right, the center looks left to you. Well it seems I have gotten off subject.

As for the internet’s degrading of journalism, Mr. Border could not be more wrong. The Blogosphere’s present in the internet along with big media’s sites has created a whole new world order. It’s like someone who watched Gutenberg in operation and realized that being able to quickly combine single letters together to form words and then a page of text would revolutionize the spread of information.

To think, me and whoever is reading this are at the birth of a whole new way of life. The world is going to change more than it has ever changed before and I happen to be alive to see it happen. So it goes.