If Bloggers Aren’t Journalists, Neither Are Many Members of the MSM

Big Journalism ^ | February 1, 2012 | Alicia Cohen

[Kaslin]

In December a Federal District Judge, Marco Hernandez, ruled against blogger Crystal Cox who was being sued for defamation by attorney Kevin Padrick, whom Cox accused of corruption on her blog. The ruling declared that as a blogger, Cox was not a journalist and cannot claim the protections afforded to mainstream reporters and news. I happen to agree with his decision, but the case raises the question about what actually defines a journalist. Considering what the mainstream media represents today, the line between genuine reportage and political advocacy has been completely blurred.

In the past, many famous and well-respected journalists had no formal training but honed their craft on the job, in many cases beginning their careers as copy boys/copy girls. Walter Cronkite, once cited as the most trusted man in America, was a college dropout who had a series of newspaper jobs reporting news and sports. Eric Sevareid, Chet Huntley, and David Brinkley started their careers as broadcast journalists but never had journalism degrees. Dan Rather did receive a degree in journalism, and we can see how well that turned out once he decided to switch to advocacy journalism instead of the traditional who, what, when, where and how protocol of traditional journalism.

Advocacy journalism intentionally and transparently adopts a non-objective viewpoint for either a political or social agenda and has morphed today into nothing less than media bias and propaganda. Today the mainstream media is predominantly composed of liberal democrats, and this bias has been quite evident since the 2008 presidential race. There is also a marked difference between opinion and reportage journalism.

I have a hard time claiming to be a member of the fourth estate, although I have been writing for newspapers since 1998 as an op-ed columnist. During that time, however, I have covered news events and press conferences and submitted non-opinion articles. I never attended Journalism College, nor have I even taken one writing course. I had to drop out of college to support my mother who had had a stroke. Mark Steyn, who is a brilliant writer, never attended college at all but can write reams around many inhabiting the elitist realm of the New York Times.

Although I have little regard for Stephen Colbert as a comedian or a pundit, I must give him kudos for calling George Stephanopoulos a political operative on ABC’s “This Week.” Real journalist David Brinkley was the first host of this political news program, followed by Sam Donaldson and Cokie Roberts. Stephanopoulos earned his political science degree at Columbia University and he has been a Democrat political lion ever since, apparently making him a desirable spokesman for the party’s agenda.

I’ll never forget the weekend before the 1992 presidential election when George H.W. Bush was rising in the polls against William Jefferson Clinton. He appeared on CNN’s Larry King show, another Democrat stooge, and when King supposedly took calls from the public, which call came in first? Why, it was from Clinton’s chief political adviser, George Stephanopoulos. Imagine the odds of that happening. He had called to remind Bush that Independent Counsel Lawrence E. Walsh had that day re-indicted Weinberger on one count of “false statements.” Walsh went even further, specifically implicating Bush in the scandal, though the accusation was irrelevant, but this put the nail in the coffin for Bush’s reemerging campaign.

MSNBC, a cable station claiming to be “a leader in breaking news, video and original journalism,” is anything but. It is stocked with partisan Democrat anchors and, in one instance, Morning Joe Scarborough, a former Republican RINO. Al Sharpton? Chris Matthews? Rachel Maddow? Lawrence O’Donnell? These are journalists?

Even as an opinion writer, I made sure I bolstered my opinion with fact and I polished my craft at the New York Sun under the tutelage of Seth Lipsky, one of the best of the old school journalists. If one of my columns presented negative material on a subject, I was told to contact that person for confirmation or denial of the piece or it wouldn’t be published.

Watching MSNBC is a chore and an exercise in frustration waiting for the other side of the story. It simply will not be presented. Instead we are treated with angry scowls and insulting language thrown at Republicans. Let’s not forget those thrills up and down Matthews’ leg.

On the other hand, CNBC has the excellent Larry Kudlow, who never fails to have opposing sides present their cogent arguments, leaving it up to the audience to decide. Fox News used to be fair and balanced until they threw Glenn Beck under the bus and brought on Karl Rove as a contributor in spite of the fact that this “genius” was a truly bad adviser for President Bush.

For anyone looking for true journalistic integrity, the only sources left are the Breitbart sites. When I was recruited to write for Big Journalism by my former Sun editor Michael Walsh, I was mandated to shore up my column with videos, documents, photos and other credible data. The truth is truly out there–here–regardless of which side is vindicated.

Like most readers, I was led by the conservative press and Matt Drudge to believe that the White House had hidden an elaborate, Halloween party with Hollywood stars from the public. The WH felt it wouldn’t be wise to show this extravagance during a recession, the right and left media told us, but the real story was left to be told by Dana Loesch of BigJournalism.com.

Seems the party was funded by the celebrities for the military and their families. So why the secrecy? Maybe it was a trap set for conservatives to rage about–only to look like fools for bashing a good deed. Who knows?

The media today is filled with “gotcha journalists” bent on reelecting the one they helped elect in 2008. I think I’ll stick to just being called a writer. The word journalist has a distinct smell to it.

[abb]

Here’s what I had this morning, that has yet to be reported by any other news source in Louisiana. It concerns a potential pay raise for the position of Tax Assessor - every parish (county) in Louisiana has one - and they are well-paid, with the lowest at about $110K/yr.

I think it is news. You may not agree, but I’m the publisher/editor and I get to make that decision.

http://lincolnparishnewsonline.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/las-assessors-line-up-at-the-public-tit/
LA’s Assessors Line Up at the Public Tit

http://lincolnparishnewsonline.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/so-how-much-do-they-make-now/
So How Much do They Make Now?

[jessduntno]

You fool. Slander is spoken. This would be called libel, if it were libelous, but you would never be able to prove it and go broke trying.

[bvw]

"Y'all" is a singular form. "All y'all" is the plural. Surely you meant to write:

Maybe all y'all should gets a room and discusses it.

[jessduntno]

“LA’s Assessors Line Up at the Public Tit”

Was it a silicone job or natural? Bets on silicone.

[af_vet_rr]

Bloggers actually are a few steps beneath the MSM.

I have come across plenty of conservative bloggers who are much better than the MSM, who spend the time to source their stories, who don't try to distort the stories or spin them, and who actually care about what they are writing about, as opposed to the MSM who is only concerned with getting a paycheck and protecting Obama.

As a matter of fact, you could take any thread on FR about a particular news item, throw it on a blog, and it would in many ways be superior to the crap that the MSM churns out.

[humblegunner]

Here’s what I had this morning, that has yet to be reported by any other news source in Louisiana

So where did you learn these facts?

Did you go somewhere and ask someone? Or did you read it from another source and recycle it?

Come on, fess up..

[Sam Gamgee]

I am actually unclear why the Press should get special freedoms other Americans don’t enjoy. Why one law for the press and another for the rest of us?

[abb]

Many of the skills that I use every day as a “citizen journalist” were picked up right here at FRee Republic.

[af_vet_rr]

Bloggers actually are a few steps beneath the MSM.

In thinking about it, I never thought I'd see you, of all people, defending the MSM.

But please, continue telling us how superior the MSM is, even as the MSM does it's damnedest to protect Obama and give us Romney as our nominee.

[abb]

If you would read the story, the answer is contained therein. I got a tip from one of my readers. He spotted the notice in a newspaper legal ad and called me. There’s much information “hidden” in newspaper legal ads, concealed by a microscopic font size.

Legal ads are an antiquated procedure whereby governments can pay off newspapers which might otherwise be tempted too poke around and find to many brother-in-law deals. I’ve written about it quite a bit.

[Sam Gamgee]

How ivory tower of you.

[GOPJ]

In the past, many famous and well-respected journalists had no formal training but honed their craft on the job, in many cases beginning their careers as copy boys/copy girls. Walter Cronkite, once cited as the most trusted man in America, was a college dropout who had a series of newspaper jobs reporting news and sports. Eric Sevareid, Chet Huntley, and David Brinkley started their careers as broadcast journalists but never had journalism degrees.

The liberal MSM and liberal judges will make the call - LIBERALS who blog will be called "journalist". Conservatives will NOT be protected or regarded as journalists... They'll be consistent - unfair to us now - unfair in the future.

[humblegunner]

I have not defended the MSM, I’ve simply stated where I think bloggers stand in the lineup.

Let me make an analogy:

I don’t like buzzards.

They eat carrion.

So do maggots.

Maggots eat smaller bites of the carrion.

This does not mean I’m in favor of a buzzard’s diet simply because he takes bigger bites.

[bvw]

sarc

[Sam Gamgee]

Thank You for saying that. I get so sick of the press when it acts as though it deserves some special treatment above and beyond the rest of us pee ons. I would argue if anything the New York Times is much less vulnerable to lawsuits than you or I. They have the financial capacity to weather nuisance lawsuits while a lone blogger does not.

[abb]

I'm actually licensed...

[humblegunner]

So you’re licensed to write about stuff that somebody calls
you and tells you about, or is already written in some newspaper.

According to some simple graphic.

This proves my point. Any indigent smacktard can be a blogger.

Blogs are 94.2% trash.

[Kaslin]

That is great. Congratulations

[abb]

Any indigent smacktard can be a blogger.

Absolutely. And there's a constitutional amendment that protects the practice. It wasn't written to protect popular speech, or cogent thought, or informed writing.

It protects the ravings of lunatics, flag burners, and the writings of bigots. And it even protects citizens from those who would tell us what NOT to read.

Present company excluded, of course...

[FreedomPoster]

Nice. Reminds me of the “Absolution from White Guilt” certificates that a black conservative talk radio host by the name of Ken Hamblin used to have on his web site. This was about a dozen years ago.