Tired of Bread and Circuses

Memo to the Media and Pundocracy

Whether its Obama-Mania, a tearful Hillary, or John Edwards' hair cuts, please stop the juvenile and fact free speculative coverage. For the last 20 years, the media has come under intense criticism for the horse race nature of campaign coverage - who's up and who's down - in total disregard of the issues or the substance of policy. But now, we've entered a whole new realm, where celebrity and the most bizarre events displace substantive coverage. Some pundits have explicitly equated the campaign coverage to high school psychodrama - who's cool and who's a geek. The media circus conveniently (perhaps intentionally?) dodges the need to cover the ugly facts. You know, things like the illegal "unitary executive" Bush regime, the quagmire of a war we're now in, the fundamentalist denial of science, the collapse of the middle class, the skyrocketing cost and lack of health care for all. The campaign coverage should be asking whether all of this unconstitutional and un-american imperial Bush overreach is going to be reformed - or replicated - by the next President in power. Whether George Bush is someone you'd like to drink a beer with, whether Hillary is a bitch, or if Obama is a rock star are irrelevant to whether they should be President. Seems like the last 7 years of the Bush administration hasn't taught you anything. One would have thought you'd have learned that lesson by now. It is now abundantly clear that the complete collapse of media objectivity and accountability has allowed the Bush Administration to conduct a war of choice based on lies. Had the media been playing anything but a cheer leading role and stenographer of Republican talking points, the war and many other disasters could not have occurred. Much of the media coverage is not only irrelevant and diversionary, it has destroyed the institution's credibility - what else explains the fact that folks go to internet blogs and Comedy Central's John Stewart and Steve Colbert for news and political analysis? If media as an institution doesn't care about the future of the country, at least do the right thing to protect your own profits and credibility. Its no secret that newspaper circulation, advertising revenues, and profits are down. Similarly, TV ratings are down. You are losing market share to other venues. Think there's no relationship between this and the vapid fact free coverage that has no bearing on people's lives? So please, stop this cynical, shallow, mindless personality contest coverage. Please.