The National Media's Fear of Blogging

Last evening my wife took command of the remote, and I was forced to watch Hannity and Colmes. I don't care much for argument TV, but she wanted to see Drudge. Following Drudge's segment they covered Eason Jordan's termination at CNN. For guests, they had a Journalism expert and a Democratic Consultant. One guest discussed the right and wrong of Mr. Eason's termination, while the other attached the Bloggers who brought Mr. Eason down. What right do these citizen journalists have to hold the elites in the media accountable? It has always been a rule for me that when the Democratic Party starts sending their attach dogs after a person or group, we the people should start to listen and respect those under attach. A new day is dawning in the top national media. It is a day of accountability. A day when bias and manipulation are being shown in the light of day for all to see. More importantly, it is a day when the power to influence national opinion is being stripped away.

In a related event the Wall Street Journal chose to also attach the Blogging community as a group of amateurs on their opinion page in an story about Mr. Jordan's termination. They want to ignore Mr. Jordan's history of hiding or making up stories. They feel that their reputation has been tarnished along with CNN for not being diligent on a minor transgression. So they attach the messenger and further prove the point of the Bloggers. I have read and respected the Journal for all of my adult life and this opinion piece was pure disappointment. They have done more to prove the Blogger's point than to defend their own image.

In my own professional life as I have started to chronicle, I have had to start to reach for a new ethical level. After all, how the officers of Enron conducted themselves has little to do with the ethics that I practice in my own personal life. I have to shine the light of day on every decision I make, and make it transparent to those who trust me to be a steward of their invested capital. I would like to welcome those in the national media to this world. Unfortunately, Talk Show Hosts and Bloggers may now be becoming competitors, but trust me, they have every right to evaluate the product that the national media produces. If the national media cannot reach a higher level of ethical standards, you can trust that there are those that will help this industry to get there.