My Turn

by Debra Mamorsky

The media continues to stir the pot during these prosperous times, where complacency seems to be the order of the day. Although, jolting a public to attention with "two lackluster candidates, so we were lukewarm" (Maureen Dowd's editorial November 12, 2000 New York Times) must have been difficult. Conjuring up the charge that this presidential election was "Too Close to Call," and it was history-in-the-making, many members of the media initiated a search for soap-opera drama and intrigue to capture our attention.

Bring on a precipitous newscaster, followed by a backpeddling apologetic army of journalists, and what reaction do you get? A hand count, legal battles, anything to enliven our interest and divide us into chest-beating camps for Vice President Gore and Governor George Bush. We sat positively glued to our TVs and newspapers waiting the outcome of a hoped for heavy weight challenge. Where was the knock-out punch the media told us we would get during the debates? Perhaps a recount of votes in Florida would force an issue, any issue. Perhaps some action could be mustered up as center stage became Florida and the new cast of characters became the combating lawyers, legal analysts, sign-toting seniors, and minority activists.

"Journalists" do us a great disservice when they squander our freedom of speech with blather. Their 24 hour saga-esque focus of the lens on a specific event runs the risk of trivializing what once might have been newsworthy. Headlines like "Crisis" and "Disaster" intended to get attention, can potentially create a dangerous "cry wolf" syndrome, which may prevent us from adequately responding to a serious issue when one occurs. Additionally, we have come to understand that one of the best ways to get media attention, is to do something really horrendous. This type of imbalanced negative coverage has the potential to polarize us as a society, and to plant the seeds of fear and hate. It's not that these events shouldn't be reported, it's the manner in which they are reported that permeates despair. The sum affect is that the news of the day did nothing to uplift a human heart or spirit that is groping for inspiration and a reason to dedicate itself to something outside its own self interest.

Unfortunately, the public still tunes in, demanding nothing better from our journalists and their follow-up of each millisecond of the same-old-same-old news. Some would argue, we tune in because we are looking for that knock out punch, but I would suggest that most people are probably hoping for some glimpse of meaning, some resolution and truth that will dignify our lives.