Ok, so I’m a little late on the news. Apparently, during a Meet the Press interview, a Colin Powell aide attempted to cut the interview short by turning the camera away from the Secretary of State. Here’s a link to the video, provided by A Whole Lotta Nothing.
This incident demonstrates how the news media acts as an information gatekeeper. Meet the Press could have chosen to edit the footage and totally ignore what happened. Instead, they chose to criticize Mr. Powell by airing the footage.
While I don’t see anything wrong with airing the footage, and I applaud them for making that decision, I believe the media has become too conservative. In order to make their viewer base as wide as possible, media companies have opted to avoid any type of news that could alienate a particular viewer group. For example, I haven’t seen much about the ‘gay issue’, even though I feel that it’s going to be one of the most decisive factors in the November election.
Furthermore, I think the media companies have failed in their duties as gatekeepers because they filter out information that damages their corporate owners. With the ongoing consolidation in the media industry, there are fewer and fewer independent news sources. Consequently, reports discrediting the claims of the RIAA or MPAA are rarely presented to a nationwide audience.
Maybe blogs will provide the next wave of independent news…
Post a Comment