OCR Text |
Show WWcls ase shies EBRUARY-MARCH IS POINTBLANK MEDIA DEADFROMTHENECKUP? MAINSTREAM BY KAREN The ending of Martin Murie’s latest column made me pause and think. described a tense “conversation” he had with a friend about world affairs. He It wasnt an argument because, as Murie says, an argument is a “mutual trading of views. You listen and you speak and you listen again.” I began to think about this “mutual trading of views” and wondered if we, as a people, are informed enough, especially politically, to take part in a true argument. Democracy allows for this “mutual trading of views” and is a necessary part of keeping our country strong and vibrant. We look to mainstream media—radio, television, and print—to keep us informed on what is happening in our local, state, and federal governments. But does our media fulfill the needs of a democratic society? For our democracy to remain viable it is imperative for our media to investigate and question issues and people. For our democracy to remain viable it is imperative for our media to investigate and question issues and people. It is incumbent on the media to ask hard questions and press our leaders for facts in an effort to keep us informed on the extraordinary issues that presently impact our democracy and politics. Unfortunately, this does not seem to be the case at this time. It seems our media is doing us a disservice in what appears to be an unwillingness to accurately investigate and report on the major crises our nation is currently facing. Our current administration clearly invented reasons for the preemptive invasion of Iraq yet the media, rather than investigating this farce, instead gave the Bush administration a pass. It is appalling that the reasons for war, which seemed to change daily, were never fully challenged by major media. To get any facts concerning this issue one has to go to alternative media such as alternative newspapers, blogs or the internet which are clearly doing the main- stream print media’s job. It only hurts when | move. 2007 HASTINGS All of our mainstream media has taken whatever the Bush administration says, on any issue, as the truth and passes these “talking points” on as news. The cause of this is rather chilling. Currently the majority of our local and national media are held by a few huge corporations. These corporations, who contributed heavily to the party of big business—the Republican party —have - effectively neutered our media. This suggests that the bottom line is now more important that getting to the bottom of an issue or story and our society is forced to accept less news and more “junk” touted as news as our nightly news applies the same weight to a story about national and international incidents as they do to a story about a recital for the local ballet school. It is sad to say the people in this country know more about Michael Jackson, Lacy Peterson, and JonBenet Ramsey than they do about the Iraq war, the degradation of our environment, or our ballooning national debt. Are we becoming a nation that relies on sensationalism, sound bites and “at- tack” ads to make decisions regarding how and who runs our local, state, and federal governments? Are we getting the necessary facts that aid us in important decisions or is our media pushing their own agenda? If so, we clearly put our democracy at risk. Perhaps more than ever, our country needs a free and unencumbered media to investigate and report on complex political issues. We need media that advances rather than retreats. We need a return to real investigative journalism; a return to more Edward R. Murrows and fewer Katie Courics. We need media to search for truths rather than regurgitating the talking points of individuals, groups, or parties. It should never be a prerequisite that disseminating news must be a money making venture because true news will suffer. Our media must challenge all our elected officials and report their conclusions to the citizens of this country rather than to the boardrooms of immense corporations. It should never be a prerequisite that disseminating news must Wilderness Medicine of Utah 154 M Street Salt Lake City, UT 84103 WILDERNESS FIRST RESPONDER Prevention Diagnosis Treatment Evacuation ZION NATIONAL PARK: 4/23 to 4/28 additional info at Zion Adventure Co. MOAB: 2/12 to 2/17 & 4/30 to 5/5 SLC: 3/19 to 3/24 PARK CITY: June 2007 (exact dates later) Wilderness Medicine of Utah offers the WFR Certification. Courses are taught by faculty from the University of Utah School of Medicine and certified instructors from Wilderness Medicine of Utah Ken Sleight in Courthouse Wash, Arches NP. 1982 CREEK re WE HAVE CABIN RENTALS AVAILABLE FOR THE WINTER... Peaceful & Lovely CONTACT US: 801.915.3832 www.wmutah.org PACK beyond your fondest imaginings... RANCH for rent For more information on TRAIL RIDES with Ken, 435.259.8575 kensleight @frontiernet.net NIGHTLY CABIN _ RENTALS 435.259.8333 jsleight1 @frontiernet.net |