Memo to journalists; your job is to deeply probe and offend the establishment over war

Is there a better description of what all reporters should be doing as explained here by American journalist Michael Hastings… in 2010?

Look, I went into journalism to do journalism, not advertising. My views are critical but that shouldn’t be mistaken for hostile – I’m just not a stenographer. There is a body of work that shows how I view these issues but that was hard-earned through experience, not something I learned going to a cocktail party on fucking K Street. That’s what reporters are supposed to do, report the story.

Salon’s Glenn Greenwald writes about the new Hastings book, The Operators, and explains why so many corporate hacks don’t like him or the message:

…There is a perverse, inverse relationship between the amount of power someone wields in Washington and the willingness of most establishment journalists to engage in reporting that exposes or embarrasses them. These journalists love to swarm with contempt on the marginalized and powerless in their world (people and groups like Julian Assange, Occupy Wall Street, Christine O’Donnell, Ron Paul, Dennis Kucinich, etc.), but when it comes to those who exercise real power and are members in good standing of the Washington establishment — war Generals, senior White House officials, corporate officials and lobbyists — they tread with extreme caution when they do anything other than obediently convey messages.

Text and images ©2024 Antony Loewenstein. All rights reserved.

Site by Common