Recently, Decius wrote: It's important to understand that it isn't Congress that must change -- it is us. We need good, publicly funded, refereed voter guides that provide balanced information about the issues, and we need to promote a culture that advocates that people evaluate the information in these guides objectively and without regard to partisan bias.
Previously, he wrote: News media election guides often present editorial endorsements alongside or interspersed with raw election information. Editorial endorsements are an important exercise of our First Amendment rights. However, when voters are getting all of their information from an opinionated source it is harder for them to view the information objectively and make their own choices.
And long before that, he wrote: Everyone participates in the process of producing the truth every day. Your recommendations matter. You will need to be able to think critically about the range of ideas that you are exposed to and decide which ones make sense. It is that last part that will really move us forward.
In the October issue of Atlantic Monthly, Mark Bowden writes: With journalists being laid off in droves, ideologues have stepped forward to provide the "reporting" that feeds the 24-hour news cycle. The collapse of journalism means that the quest for information has been superseded by the quest for ammunition. I would describe their approach as post-journalistic. It sees democracy, by definition, as perpetual political battle. The blogger's role is to help his side. Without journalism, the public good is viewed only through a partisan lens, and politics becomes blood sport. Journalism, done right, is enormously powerful precisely because it does not seek power. It seeks truth. Those who forsake it to shill for a product or a candidate or a party or an ideology diminish their own power. They are missing the most joyful part of the job.
Louis Menand: Facts never speak for themselves. We speak for them.
On Jon Stewart against Tucker Carlson: Mr. Stewart said that ranting partisan political shows on cable were "hurting America."
Recall: STEWART: Here's just what I wanted to tell you guys. CARLSON: Yes. STEWART: Stop. [LAUGHTER] STEWART: Stop, stop, stop, stop hurting America. BEGALA: OK. Now [CROSSTALK] STEWART: And come work for us, because we, as the people...... [ Read More (0.3k in body) ]
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