Well, here we are but how did we get here?
Why has the who-what-where-when-why-&-how of traditional government watchdog journalism been allowed to fall by the wayside?
Who or what has caused this slow but steady, creeping cruddy erosion of the traditional role of our watchdog on government? When, where and why did it start?
The Fourth Estate has played the watchdog role in society since our country’s inception. How can we bring back the traditional journalist’s role of being the active watchdog on government and its officials – on behalf of the people and stop the subtlety of elected oppression that has steadily crept into our lives?
In short, how do we bring back that proactive, hard-hitting voice of the Fourth Estate?
How do we return to responsibly placing constant pressure on elected officials and return the power into the hands of the people by aggressively keeping them informed of what their elected and appointed representatives are doing?
In this writer’s opinion, we do that by returning to the full-on aggressive role of watchdog on the government. We return to a free and economically strong press. That can only be done by returning the presidents' and publishers' role in ensuring the economic security of their companies and thereby maintaining the freedom of their news and editorial rooms.
We do that by properly training aspiring young people to be real journalists and reminding them of what their role in society is really supposed to be. Writers, reporters and editors must return to those core values rather than being little more than social entertainers.
While this creeping crud began long before the desert wars and the flourishing of the internet, those two events did more to speed the degradation and stagnation of true traditional journalism than any other single event. Wars can blur our vision and distract our attention from core values.
Traditional news organizations were led by people who followed core values and ethical standards that were, by design, put into place, much like the First and Second Amendments, to protect us from our elected, and in far too many cases, greedy government officials.
In his book, “War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning," Chris Hedges points out that “the rush of battle is often a potent and lethal addiction, for war is a drug.”
That powerful statement appears at the beginning of Kathryn Bigelow's 2008 film, “The Hurt Locker.” This film aired shortly after my move from president and publisher of the Pacific Daily News on Guam to Hawaii to be president of Gannett Pacific and publisher of the Honolulu Advertiser.
The combination of the Middle Eastern wars, the exponential growth of the internet and the press owners' fear of financial loss hastened the decline of traditional journalism. Current politics has only driven it even deeper into the same hole.
Much like the railroads and interstate highways that crisscross the United States, the internet was driven by the government. While, in my opinion, the interstate highways and railways drove and sped economic growth and expansion – driven by wars - the inception of the internet opened a proverbial Pandora’s jar.
If you recall, Pandora had a jar filled with all sorts of misery and evil and when she opened the jar the evils flew out all over the earth. This, for my purposes, includes the internet, which enables anyone and everyone to call themselves reporters. Only in this case, reporters to the world.
A world that heretofore had, in many cases, viewed newspapers and news organizations in a similar way they viewed the Bible. If it was printed, it was the truth.
The vast majority of these so-called electronic reporters are little more than ego-building, self-ingratiating would-be entertainers with little or no desire to take the time to really seek the truth on behalf of the public they supposedly serve.
In today’s digital media, there are few, if any, real controls on what is written and whether or not it's true or just imagined by someone sitting in front of their computer in their underwear with a drink next to their keyboard.
As Voltaire said, “Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.”
According to Chris Hedges, “Cable News, CNN, MSNBC, Fox: it’s just burlesque. The print media has atrophied for many reasons, including commercial reasons. ... Any institution as it dies becomes more reactive, it becomes more fearful, it attempts to sustain itself, it attempts to not anger or alienate the few people it has left. And so, it actually accelerates its own decline. And that’s happening in the press.”
In large communities that is very true but in small communities, such as ours, it can be avoided through impactful news coverage, solid editorials and good business management.
Let’s work together to make Guam great again.
Esta.
Lee Webber is the former publisher of the Pacific Daily News, Honolulu Advertiser, president of Gannett Pacific and Asia area manager for USA Today international.
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