The presidential race dominated the news in the American media last week. Newspapers in Europe were following the race as well. Brooke gets an international perspective from Ed Finn, who writes about the foreign press for Slate.com.
When George W. walked out on the stage in Arizona this week, viewers at home could be forgiven for copping a peek at the president's back. Whether or not they could see something there, between the shoulder blades, under the suit jacket, probably depended on their predisposition to a certain rumor churning through cyberspace. To wit: the President is wired. Slate Magazine's Chris Suellentrop joins Brooke to chart the story of the mysterious bulge, and discuss the challenges of covering a rumor.
Last week, a photographer for a Missouri student newspaper was assigned to cover a campus political rally. During the event, she inadvertently photographed a theft in progress. The student offered to show the image to the police, but instead, they confiscated her camera. And with that, the incident entered the annals of conflict between media and law enforcement. Mark Goodman, executive director of the Student Press Law Center, discusses the case with Bob.
The advent of new communication technologies inevitably brings cries of horror from linguistic purists who fear for the sanctity of proper English. And so it is with cell phone text messaging, popular for years in Europe and gaining traction in America. The constraints of typing messages on a tiny screen have spawned a novel written lingo, and that lingo is seeping into other textual realms as well. Bob moderates a debate between Geoffrey Nunberg and Naomi Baron over the semiotic threat posed by text messaging.
The Sinclair Broadcast Group has ordered its 62 local TV stations to preempt their usual programming for a commercial-free airing of "Stolen Honor," a documentary critical of John Kerry. Criticism from Kerry supporters was swift, and activists have targeted local advertisers with a boycott campaign. Sinclair may be guilty of trying to influence the election outcome, but is it doing anything illegal? Brooke sorts through the morass of election season broadcast regulations with Andrew Jay Schwartzman, executive director of the Media Access Project.
Several reliable polls suggest that for most Americans, local TV newscasts are a prime source of information about local government. But a recent study found that in the weeks leading up to the 2002 elections, about half of the local newscasts in the top 50 markets didn't air a single story on any campaign. OTM's Paul Ingles reports on why some news departments steer away from political coverage, while others break new ground in the area.
Ever since 1980, the idea of an "October Surprise" has fascinated political junkies everywhere. The term originated with allegations that the Reagan campaign made a secret arrangement with Iranian hostage-takers in order to discredit President Carter. As a tactic, it has provided a successful model for election sabotage, and few have forgotten its efficacy. On the eve of another election, Brooke reflects on the long October wait for the other shoe to drop.
Highlights from Past Shows
Bush and Kerry spent most of the week preparing for their first big showdown, leaving the campaign press with little to do but spin their wheels in anticipation. “Spin” being the operative word. The net effect of a week’s worth of prognosticating pundits and campaign talking points was an overall lowering of expectations, resulting in a surprising level of surprise in a lot of the post-debate analysis. Brooke reflects on the pre- and post-debate spin.
This week representatives from 191 nations gathered for the 59th meeting of the U.N. General Assembly. President Bush gave the traditional welcome, drawing a "polite" reception from those gathered. His remarks came less than a week after U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan agreed that the US-led invasion was illegal. Brooke reviews the response to Bush's speech in the global media with Martin Walker, editor in chief of United Press International.
On the Media is funded by The Bydale Foundation, The Ford Foundation, The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and the Overbrook Foundation.
