Raines watch: Howell claims that since he is independent, he is therefore ideology-free. That's sure how the following remarks read to me:
Raines Lashes Out at Liberal Bias
“Disinformation” Claims
New York Times Executive Editor Howell Raines lashed out at what he called a “disinformation” effort “of alarming proportions” to “convince our readers that we are ideologues.” Accepting the “George Beveridge Editor of the Year Award” at the National Press Foundation's awards dinner on Thursday night, Raines worried that “those of us who work for fair-minded publications and broadcasters have been too passive in pointing out the agendas of those who want to use journalism as a political tool,” meaning conservatives.
Raines denounced the “attempt to convince the audience of the world’s most ideology-free newspapers that they’re being subjected to agenda driven news reflecting a liberal bias.” Rejecting any culpability for why anyone would perceive a liberal bias, Raines accused those who document liberal media bias of being advocates for “biased journalism.”
MRC analyst Patrick Gregory took down the relevant portion of Raines' remarks at the February 20 event at the Washington Hilton which was shown live on C-SPAN2:
“As a veteran of five other newspapers, each irreplaceable to its own community, I feel a sense of pride and stewardship when it comes to the values of mainstream American journalism. The intellectual bond, the contract of accuracy and fairness between us and our readers is central to that tradition. Our greatest accomplishment as a profession is the development since World War II of a news reporting craft that is truly non-partisan, and non-ideological, and that strives to be independent of undue commercial or governmental influence. Prior to World War II, American newspapers often functioned as political tools of their owners.
“The most important development of the post-war period among journalists, American journalists, was the acceptance throughout our profession of an ethic that says we report and edit the news for our papers, but we don’t wear the political collar of our owners, or the government, or any political party. It is that legacy we must protect with our diligent stewardship. To do so means we must be aware of the energetic effort that is now underway to convince our readers that we are ideologues. It is an exercise of, in disinformation, of alarming proportions. This attempt to convince the audience of the world’s most ideology free newspapers that they’re being subjected to agenda driven news reflecting a liberal bias. I don’t believe our viewers and readers will be in the long-run misled by those who advocate biased journalism.
“But perhaps those of us who work for fair-minded publications and broadcasters have been too passive in pointing out the agendas of those who want to use journalism as a political tool, while aiming an accusing finger at those who practice balanced journalism. I believe as Coach Bryant used to say, 'The fourth quarter belongs to us.’ As inheritors of the mainstream journalistic practices of the post-war era, we will endure because we have values to protect. Values that were forged in the furnace of democracy by our brothers and sisters who could not be seduced into being either the lapdogs or the attack dogs of any political interest or philosophy.
“I accept this award tonight on behalf of my colleagues of the New York Times, and as a reminder of the obligation that all serious journalists share to be good stewards of our irreplaceable professional heritage. Your award says tonight, says to me that you think we had a good newspaper last year. We’re gonna try to make it better in 2003.”
Just not any less biased.
The National Press Foundation's Web site: nationalpress.org
Raines made his remarks minutes after ABC's Cokie Roberts finished admonishing her journalist colleagues for not being willing to say “we” are at war. As detailed in the February 21 CyberAlert, Roberts revealed she's “never understood” the argument against using “the first person plural when talking about 'our country.'” She contended: “It's 'our' country. And yes it's 'we' in the United States of America. I don't get that argument. And it will be 'our' soldiers who go to war.” That would appear to conflict with Jennings and the reasoning behind ABC's anti-lapel flag pin policy. For more:
mediaresearch.org
mrc.org |
