The group was by-invitation only and about 400 people signed up. They were a like-minded group of left wingers that included opinion writers and other pundits, some academics and think tank Lefties and, here's the rub, working reporters, including some from major publications.
I would have expected at least some substantive discourse, but the excerpts from the various e-mails seem like the kind of mindless, hate-filled hate speech you can find on some Left Wing blog sites. One NPR staffer said she would laugh and do nothing if Rush Limbaugh had a heart attack in front of her. Another attacked FOX News, habitual with these folks.
What is more disturbing is that the working reporters participated with the others on the site in coordinating and strategizing on how they would manipulate the news, which is totally against the traditional code of ethics that used to govern the profession, which is now becoming a racket and a fraud.
For example, they agreed that the dreadful Rev. Jeremiah Wright, of "God d- America!" fame, was to be downplayed during the Obama campaign. So he didn't get much space at all in the mainstream press during the campaign.
In successful another effort, they agreed on talking points aimed at destroying any credibility Sarah Palin might have had with their readers. The outcome was that Palin was painted in the mainstream press and on the broadcast networks as an intellectual lightweight, and an inexperienced know-nothing - the irony being that she possessed far more executive experience than "their" candidate, Obama.
The coordinating and fabrication of news is troubling enough, but there is an even more disturbing aspect to their activities. Daniel Levy of the Century Foundation spoke of their role as "the non-official campaign" in attacking Palin. "This seems to me like an occasion when the non-official campaign has a big role to play in defining Palin and shaping the terms of the conversation and saying things the official (Obama) campaign shouldn't say."
So here are working journalists participating in making up the news, participating in a "non-official" campaign to help Democrats and the White House. Happily, they are loosing readership and viewers. I'm not sure if that is due to a lack of trust by the audience, or simply that most of their specious work is also very, very dull.
Sometimes people ask me how to identify if a piece they are reading is accurate, or is slanted or distorted. Here is a trick some wire service reporters often use.
In a regular news story (not an opinion piece) the reporter discerns what the main focus of the story is and this becomes the lede (first) paragraph. The writer would then go onward into the particulars and end with some deeper background. Note - be sure to read beyond the first three paragraphs right to the last paragraph. Often, you will find the kernel, the real story, has been buried down there.
Also, if a reporter consistently seems to favor one side in political stories, you can be certain he/she has an agenda. Why? Because most journalism schools produce obedient Liberals. These folks believe this is their ticket of acceptance into the "Ruling Class" of elites and they are correct.
In George Orwell's novel "1984", we encounter the Ministry of Truth. The name, of course, is a misnomer and in reality, the ministry serves the opposite purpose. The ministry was responsible for the fabrication of historic events. But the name, in one sense, was also appropriate because the ministry created and manufactured "truth." It also functioned to maintain the illusion that Big Brother and The Party was never wrong. It cannot ever be seen to change its mind or make a mistake as that could imply weakness. To maintain power The Party had to seem eternally right and strong. Does that remind you of Washington today and its relations with the mainstream media?
The JournoList is now out of business. But the Ministry of Truth will rise again. Watch out for it.
Copyright©2010SheilahPepper
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