Honestly, why do people still sound so surprised by this? The mainstream press in this country — as Jeff Jarvis happily advocated years ago — no longer believes itself responsible for “reporting” the news, a task they feel is a kind of cultural stenography, and as such, far beneath both their talents and ambitions. Instead, they fancy themselves activists of sorts, and the role of the journalist, per Jarvis, is to tell stories — and to do so in a way that public perception is shaped and corrected, where readers come away not with a mere set of facts, but rather with a lesson.
It’s the journalist version of Cass Sunstein’s “nudge” — and it bespeaks a contempt for the very idea of free minds and an open society, because its fundamental assertion, veiled beneath the self-serving veneer of public intellectualism and civic engagement, is that ordinary people, left alone to assimilate information and decide for themselves what “lessons,” if any, to take away from a set of given facts, fairly and accurately reported, will often take away the wrong lessons. Which is why people like Jarvis and the contemporary mainstream press believe it is their function to act as a social corrective.
It is a form of intellectual presumptuousness that acts as a building block for soft tyranny. And it is one of the ways the left — whose ideological base makes up no more than 20% of the country — has managed to accumulate so much political power and social clout. The long march through the institutions has taken place. And the political right, rather than fight it at its root, has chosen simply to operate within it’s parameters and push back on occasion, generally fecklessly and largely with little real urgency.
Losing more slowly. Such will always be the case until the real cultural and intellectual battles are fought. GOP horse races and strategies for “electability” are but impotent side shows.
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I am shocked! Shocked! This is outrageous!
Where were her fellow Times reporters? They should have been there to support the cause they believe in.
At this point people are surprised by this the way John Belushi was surprised by the theft of Pinto’s car in Animal House.
You know what, though? Great! Let this pus keep oozing out until people realize how deep the wound is…
As limey Marxists go, Ms Lennard seems awfully fit. I think she should be near the top of the list for anyone bringing his own tent into Zuccotti Park.
Lennard is also listed as a writer for Politico, although her offerings are…sparse.
OWS needs one thing.
Cossacks.
I wonder if they know anything about gambling going on at Rick’s place in Casablanca.
There is gambling at Rick’s. I don’t believe it.
Are we sure this is not a NY Times staff meeting?
First the chick with the questions was like … blah blah blah … blah blah.
Second, the dude next to the british “thought experiments” chick was all about teasing his hair-do.
Third, the Transitional Council on Libya would make mincemeat out of the whole lot of them. F*king pansies. Bring on Armageddon.
Just finished reading 48 Liberal Lies etc. and was again reminded that the idea of neutrality in the news media was really a passing phase.
I wish they’d just hurry up and go back to labeling themselves by party affiliations and be done with it.