The 'Left-Wing' Media?

In: Monthly review: an independent socialist magazine, Volume 55, Issue 2, p. 1-16

Abstract

Examines the current attack on "left-wing" media content. Discussion opens with a look at the role of early-20th-century professional journalism, listing nine ideal principles that govern journalism & that find a narrow field of application that has since been transformed given the political & commercial requirements of media owners. Three biases have been adopted by professional journalism -- eg, government officials & powerful individuals are seen as the primary legitimate news source -- resulting in the institution of an establishment bias. The conservative media critique centers on four propositions: (1) Decisive power over the news lies with the journalists; owners & advertisers are irrelevant or relatively powerless. (2) Journalists are political liberals. (3) Journalists abuse their power to advance liberal politics. (4) Objective journalism would reflect the conservative worldview. These propositions are subjected to their own critique before addressing how the conservative critique of the liberal news media has assumed such strength in US political & media culture, citing hardcore financially powerful political organizing & the constant repetition of the phenomenon of a liberal news bias with no countervailing response as core reasons. Factors driving journalism's right-wing shift include the Republican Party's right wing, the diminished autonomy of journalists, & conservatism's comfort within corporate media. It is concluded that the key transformation in the news media has been the loss of space for critical journalistic work & an accompanying shift in favorable coverage to the conservative wing of elite opinion as evident in the news coverage of controversial & scandalous events connected to Bill Clinton as compared to George Bush. J. Zendejas