Slime Journalism

I have to be honest with you all for a minute. This post was, perhaps, the hardest I have written so far because I am so angry and outraged with what I see going on in the main stream media (msm) today, and as a result, this may be the most honest post I have written to date. In the words of a great American, Sean Hannity, "Journalism is dead." This statement couldn't be more true. The journalism of today has become so distorted and untrue that it's hard for me to actually admit that I studied journalism in college. Where is the objective, fair journalism of the past? Where is the media organization that I was once so proud to call myself a member of? While in college, I learned to always check my sources- a anonymous source was not a credible source. I also learned that if you wanted the honest answers, you had to ask the tough questions. My professors taught me to have journalistic integrity and to live by the journalistic creed of ethics and responsibility. I learned to always work my hardest while upholding my morals and integrity. I learned about the importance of the five W's (who?, what?, when?, where?, why?) and about the meaning of playing fair. I will never forget getting a "0" on a story because I put the word "and" instead of "or" when giving the symptoms of an incurable disease. Looking back at this experience, I remember thinking why one word mattered so much? Now, I understand. Facts are facts and should be correctly reported. Had my story been printed in a newspaper, I would have lost all credibility as a journalist. This brings me to the problem at hand with the majority of so-called journalists today. The media have become what would be classified as "Yellow Journalism." Instead of reporting the truth, the media are so hell-bent on getting their story out there, they have forgotten to check out the facts, which is the number one rule of journalism. It seems that in the age of Obama, tabloid journalism has taken precedent. Journalists have forgotten whom they work for- us. Furthermore, the msm journalists are on mission to exploit and degrade those whom they see as a threat to the president they worked so hard to elect. This is definitely not the fair-minded journalism of the past.


While in college, I was determined to one day be like Katie Couric. As a young woman, I used to look up to her because she had a dream job and represented everything I thought a journalist should. Boy, was I wrong! The election of 2008 changed the perception I used to have of Ms. Couric. When I first heard Sarah was going to be interviewed by Katie, I thought that as a woman, Katie would know firsthand what it was like to be a successful woman; instead, Katie illustrated the harsh reality of how corrupt the msm have become. She is a great example of a journalist who has gone from a woman who reported the facts objectively and fairly into a tabloid journalist on a mission to destroy a great woman's good name just so her messiah can be seen as angelic in the eyes of her viewers. Shame on you, Ms. Couric! What are you teaching up-and-coming journalists- that it's okay to report dishonestly and spitefully? You took what would have been a great opportunity to expand the playing field for women in the political arena, and instead chose to belittle and degrade a woman of high political standing, one of the few female governors and high-ranking female politicians who exist today. Was is worth it, Katie? Sure you got a little more airtime and a short-lived ratings' boost, but in the process you hurt women everywhere who have worked so hard to achieve great things. I wonder how Katie would feel if the shoe been on the other foot? What if she was treated the terrible, biased way that she treated Sarah? What if she was mocked and asked ridiculous questions that held no bearing to the job she sought to hold? I guarantee little Miss Couric would be singing a different tune. It wasn't too long ago that she became the first woman to anchor an evening news broadcast. I remember how proud I was to be a woman when this was announced. Doesn't she remember that, like Sarah, she was ridiculed and treated unfairly when she stepped into her new role? I guess Katie, being the so-called feminist she is, couldn't bring herself to compare the treatment she received to the treatment a former small-town mayor from AK received? How hypocritical is that? So, in typical bully fashion, in order to build herself up, she decided she would do her best to bring Sarah down. It's funny because all she got out of it was a short-lived ratings' boost, a little attention, and some stupid award at a ceremony where she took yet another chance to belittle and mock Sarah. By the way, Katie, Sarah never said she could see Russia from her house, but I guess if you would have checked your facts, you would have found this to be untrue.



The aspects that bother me most about the so-called journalism of today is the use of anonymous sources and false, misleading stories. While you and I could think of so many examples of both of these aspects, it is what has been falsely reported most recently that has me extremely angry and troubled about the evil that resides in the whole journalism industry. Last night, I was listening to a local Sacramento News report on the radio when it was reported that the New York "Slimes," I mean "Times," falsely reported that Sarah's hairdresser said Sarah had been so stressed out lately that her hair had started thinning. As I listened, I could not believe what I was hearing. Right away, I knew the Times was up to its old tricks of falsifying a story, only this time, they had hit a new low. They had the nerve to use a good person who was close to Sarah to develop a juicy, gossip-filled story while continuing their all-out assault on her. As everyone who has a hairdresser knows, the relationship you form with that person is very special and unique. While getting your hair done, you form an unbreakable bond of trust and respect. Sarah's hairdresser does not deserve to be treated this way; Sarah's friends and family do not deserve to be treated this way.
This falsified story is yet another example of how low the msm will go to get a story. With false stories like these, it is no wonder the "New York Times" and media outlets like it are on the verge of extinction. How low must a media outlet go before they stop to see the damage they have caused? It breaks my heart to think about what the young journalism students of today are learning? How are they 100% positive that the paper or new's station they are citing is 100% accurate in their reporting? I'm sorry, but if you ask me, the "New York Times" has become just about as accurate as "Wikipedia". Perhaps singer, Jessica Andrews, puts it best in her song "Karma: 'Go on, go on, go have your day in the sun. Have a blast, honey, have you some fun. But don't forget about that golden rule- what you do to others is gonna get done to you. What comes around, goes around. I'm tellin' you, baby, it's called karma. What goes up comes down, hits the ground. You're gonna find out, all about, all about ka-ka-ka-ka-ka karma.'" Couldn't have said it any better myself.



As I sit here writing this, I think about all of the great journalists who have come and gone- greats such as Tony Snowe, Tim Russert, David Bloom and Walter Cronkite. What would they have to say about an industry they worked so hard to keep honest? These men KNEW how to ask the tough questions, yet they were respected and admired for the way they kept journalism honest and fair. It occurs to me that with these great men, one never knew to which political party they belonged to, if any. Instead, we have today's media, which are defined by so-called journalists who publicly cry at presidential inaugurations,get thrills up their legs, bow to the commander-in-chief, and even journalists who don't bother to correct the president when he gets the name of a Major League Baseball stadium wrong. If there is any good to come from this tragedy, it's that with every false, sensationalized story that is written, more and more people are beginning to realize how destructive the msm has become. So, I say, "bring it on!" People are smarter than the msm think. We are not going to just sit back and watch as our country is taken over. There is evidence that we starting to be heard. A wide variety of newspaper outlets have seen a drop in their readerships. The David Letterman's of this world are also suffering. Letterman's degrading remarks about Sarah and her daughter not only cost him sponsors, but the outrage he received from the majority of the country served as a huge wake-up call. It is just sad that Sarah and her family had to suffer in the process. As I have mentioned before, no other female politician has had to suffer as much. It's time for the media to wise up and admit that they have failed, but I'm not holding my breath for an apology. It is our job as Americans to keep the msm honest. Don't be afraid to speak up if you see a biased story or cancel your subscription to a newspaper or magazine because chances are, you are not the only person taking action. There are a lot of us who are fed up with the state of the media today. So, next time you want to yell at the TV, or in my case, throw a high-heel at the it, voice your objections. Do it for Sarah, do it for her friends and family, do it for the other good, honest people out there, and most importantly do it for yourself because as the saying goes, good always overcomes evil in the end.