After I read the morning news and went through the various blogs this morning, I had this feeling that I was on some sort of runaway train. The throttle is wide open and we're rocketing down the tracks, the passenger cars swaying from side to side as the speed increases. Now substitute our country for the train. Okay, I know I shouldn't let the news get to me like this…it's generated by people who want you to look at their product and not necessarily because they want to inform you. Eyes good, brain bad. I should think about it more carefully before I let the 'runaway train' scare me. For instance, aren't all of the networks in trouble financially? I read that cable is draining them dry. So if they are in that kind of trouble, why would I believe that the news departments are told to search out the truth, no matter what the cost is? Sorry, Walter Cronkite is dead. And it's the same scenario with newspapers, isn't it? Are they hiring investigative reporters to crack open stories that just might offend an advertiser? Or a possible influence peddling Congressman with local clout? I don't think so. I feel the train slowing down.
Now that the 'train' has stopped, the question is…where do we find good, responsible news?
For some comfort in this regard, read James B. Stewart's article in the 9/21 New Yorker. It's an excellent example of investigative reporting delivered in an objective tone.
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