Imagine trying to objectively report on your own demise.
Not an easy task but one that became necessary for National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) when President Donald Trump submitted his “rescission request” to Congress to eliminate funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB).
I have read the coverage by PBS and NPR. Legendary broadcaster Edward R. Murrow would be proud.
Many of you have seen the movie “Good Night, and Good Luck” or seen or read about the Broadway show with the same title. They are historical dramas named after the closing iconic catchphrase of Murrow, the famed journalist who dared to confront the communist witch hunt of Sen. Joe McCarthy, R-Wisconsin.
Murrow’s willingness to challenge authority with balanced, truthful, factual reporting became the standard to which all journalists aspired thereafter.
Mister Rogers was not trying to radicalize Americans
The media is not the “enemy of the people” as President Donald Trump announced during his first term. It is the bulwark of democracy. Ever notice when a military coup is underway, invariably the first thing they seize is the local radio and TV station. Silencing the media is how you control the narrative. Contrary facts and figures, combined with uncomfortable truths, are a threat to autocracy.
Credit: Courtesy
Credit: Courtesy
“NPR and PBS have increasingly become radical left wing echo chambers for a narrow audience of mostly wealthy, white, urban liberals and progressives,” according to U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Georgia. A screech which exhibits a fear of something, but I am not quite sure what. I must admit that I did not realize the insidiousness of all of this when my kids watched “Sesame Street” and “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” or when I was entertained by “Antiques Roadshow,” “Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me!” and “TED Radio Hour.”
To me, however, the true test of journalistic integrity is how hard news is delivered and whether it holds up to the standards set by Murrow. Take for example, PBS “NewsHour,” a show which has its origins from the “MacNeil/Lehrer Report” of the mid-seventies.
My deceased sister was an early producer of the show and, because of that connection, I have watched it evolve into the show it is today. Instead of letting others decide for you, take a look and see for yourself whether it is fair and balanced.
Three lessons to be learned from MacNeil and Lehrer
Credit: AP / File
Credit: AP / File
Robert MacNeil and Jim Lehrer set about to change how news was reported and were successful in establishing a new approach which continues today.
Instead of “popcorn journalism” with sensational headlines, they expanded coverage to allow thoughtful discussion and alternative views. Their approach became what was known as “MacNeil/Lehrer Journalism” and included among other provisos:
- Assume there is at least one other side or version to every story.
- Carefully separate opinion and analysis from straight news stories and carefully label everything.
- And most importantly in this day of cable news and media celebrities, Lehrer let everyone know, “I am not in the entertainment business.”
Lehrer and MacNeil are no longer with us, but their journalistic integrity survives. Defunding the CPB and multifaceted attacks on the media in general portend a dark future for democracy.
Hopefully, we will not hear this closing line one evening: “Good night, good luck and goodbye.”
George Franklin is a lawyer, former vice president of government affairs for Kellogg Company and author of four books on politics and lobbying.
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