What Liberal Media? the Truth about Bias and the News

* What Liberal Media? The Truth About Bias and the News. Eric Alterman. New York: Basic Books, 2003. 322 pp. $25 hbk. This is one of the most depressing books I have ever read-and one of the most useful. Alterman, who writes a media column for The Nation and the "Altercation" web log for MSNBC.com, makes a compelling case that the media's presumed liberal bias is a myth, that any bias favors conservatives, and that conservatives have helped create a climate in which it is difficult to practice good journalism. The book, with forty pages of helpful citations, is meticulously documented, particularly compared to the tripe produced by Bernard Goldberg, Ann Coulter, and a few others who purport to document media bias. What Liberal Media? is depressing, whether you agree with the conclusions or not, because of what it says about the current state of journalism. Example after depressing example suggests that even reputable writers and news media are too often unfair, inaccurate, intellectually dishonest, timid, and mean-spirited. The chapters that recount the 2000 presidential campaign and the Florida election debacle are enough by themselves to make a professional or a teacher want to slit his or her wrists. One of many examples is the Washington Times' irresponsible story about candidate Al Gore's famous canoe trip down New Hampshire's Connecticut River, a story that damaged Gore's campaign. Although "almost nothing about the story was true," it was widely-and wildly-disseminated as a legitimate report by reputable media that did not verify its veracity. The book is depressing because "many conservatives who attack the media for its (sic) alleged liberalism do so because the constant drumbeat of groundless accusation has proven an effective weapon in weakening journalism's watchdog function." Alterman calls the conservative strategy "working the refs," and he makes a compelling case that it is effective. It is depressing because Alterman's research shows clearly that too many journalists are lazy and too willing to put partisanship above fair and accurate reporting. It is depressing because there seem to be no consequences for truly awful journalism. NBC's Lisa Myers, for example, interviewing Linda Lay of Enron fame, did not challenge Mrs. Lay when she said she and husband Kenneth were "fighting for liquidity." Nor did the sympathetic Myers challenge the statement, "Other than the home we live in, everything else is for sale." In fact, only two of the Lays' eighteen properties were for sale, and they "were happily sitting on at least $10 million in non-Enron stocks." Should not there be consequences for such shoddy reporting? …