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Role of Press in a Democracy

Role of Press in a Democracy. Democracy can’t function without informed, critical citizens The press is the main informer of the public A free nation requires a free press The job of the newspaper is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. Finley Peter Dunne.

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Role of Press in a Democracy

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  1. Role of Press in a Democracy • Democracy can’t function without informed, critical citizens • The press is the main informer of the public • A free nation requires a free press • The job of the newspaper is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. • Finley Peter Dunne

  2. The Press as Watch Dog • Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.–Thomas Jefferson to Edward Carrington, 1787 • The information of the people at large can alone make them the safe as they are the sole depositary of our political and religious freedom. --Thomas Jefferson to William Duane, 1810

  3. The Press as Attack Dog • Vicious press coverage is nothing new. • Contemporary treatment of candidates, even in the blogosphere, is pretty mild. • Jefferson lamented that a man who reads nothing at all is better informed that a man who reads only newspapers.

  4. The Press as Lap Dog

  5. An Informed Electorate • If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be. --Thomas Jefferson to Charles Yancey, 1816.

  6. Media Consolidation and Its Impact • A business model for news • The dangers of concentration (CJR) • The Big Five, an American keiretsu • Fear of offending those in power • MSNBC and firing Phil Donahue • PEW study on killing stories (2000)

  7. Media Consolidation and Its Impact • PEW study of reporters, editors, executives • 1/3 say stories that "hurt the financial interests” of owners/advertisers go unreported. • 41% have avoided or softened stories. • FAIR study of investigative reporters: • 70% say advertisers had "tried to influence the content”. • 60% say advertisers tried to kill stories.

  8. The More you Watch the Less you Know PIPA/KN Survey 2004

  9. The More you Watch the Less you Know(2010 Pew Study)

  10. Democracy Now! ClipFairleigh Dickinson study

  11. The 2008 Election and Blame for the Sub-Prime Crisis • Fannie, Freddie, and the CRA did it! • Larry Kudlow, George Will, Charles Krauthammer, Neil Cavuto, Lou Dobbs, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Neal Boortz, Bill O’Reilly • Narrative—the government forced banks into poor lending practices to aid the disadvantaged. • At best misleading, at worst a lie.

  12. The 2008 Election and Blame for the Sub-Prime Crisis • What the narrative ignores • The CRA applies only to FDIC institutions • 84% of all sub-prime loans come from private non-CRA institutions (Argent, American Home Mortgage, Countrywide, CitiMortgage,Wells Fargo Home Mortgage) • Fannie and Freddie don’t lend, they securitize • Fannie and Freddie’s shares of the home loan market dropped from 2002- 2007

  13. Fluff and style replace substance News as story telling—media narratives Catering to viewer preferences Debate as theater The myth of balance News as Entertainment

  14. The Myth of Balance Every issue has two equal sides Fairness involves giving equal time to both sides We report, you decide

  15. The Patron Saint of News Junkies

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