"And the news is just another show with sex and violence." - Jane's Addiction
Several of the documents produced for a recent 60 Minutes story are demonstrably forged. It just goes to show that the Media today will report just about anything that they think might give them ratings, even though they haven't verified the facts. In this case, I think that 60 Minutes was fooled because they wanted to believe that the documents were real, and were in too much of a hurry to.
Once .PDFs of the actual documents were released (see http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/09/06/politics/main641481.shtml ) many people across the internet (e.g. http://www.littlegreenfootballs.com/weblog ) immediately noticed font anachronisms. Little superscript "th"s and evidence of auto-centering and word wrap led some to attempt to reproduce the documents using Microsoft Word. Apparently it is easy to make exact duplicates using relatively default settings. Oops!
The most amazing part is that CBS is sticking to the story, calling their sources "unimpeachable". Apparently they are stickng their collective heads in the sand. As I write this, CBS radio is reporting that Dan Rather will address the issue in detail on the CBS Evening News. At this time he is expected to produce more (better forged?) evidence to back up his story.
This problem is not limited to CBS. I have been fascinated by the evolution of news stories for quite some time. Now that there are at least five major 24-7 news stations, the pressure to "get the scoop" is so high that they will broadcast any rumor at the drop of a hat. These days they even report that another news source is reporting something. I guess they feel that it removes any responsibility from them if the story is bogus. Other times they report a story with the disclaimer that it isn't independently verified.
Long ago, when newspapers were the main source of news for the country, stories weren't even printed until they were verified. Journalism meant more than rumormongering then. Then again, when deadlines occur once a day, you have more time to find out the truth. Even shows like 60 Minutes have become more frequent and are under more pressure to air more timely news. I remember when 60 Minutes ran once a week on Sunday evenings, and it often showed stories that the reporters had been working on for weeks.
The ability of the average citizen to get information from just about any source just about instantaneously has caused a demand for a shorter and shorter news cycle. The evolution of TV news from Journalism to Entertainment has worsened the problem. As I watch the facts of an emerging story mutate every half hour on CNN Headline News, I wonder how long the public will retain their faith in the News Media. I suppose given the other things that the public believes, the news is safe.
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