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Charlottesville: Reporters should leave the opinion writing to us pundits

Charlottesville

Editors note this is a shockingly well written editorial by Paul Mulshine 

By Paul Mulshine

Columnist, The Star-Ledger

After a couple of years during which Donald Trump has done so much to make the jobs of those of us in the media easier and more entertaining, I am starting to see a pattern.

First the Donald says something of which my fellow members of the media strongly disapprove.

Then they take to their computers and TV screens to declare that “This time he’s really gone too far.”

Much speculation about his replacement by someone less interesting ensues.

And then the Donald mounts a counterattack that deflates the media narrative – until next time, when he will once again go too far and start the cycle over again.

The coverage of this Charlottesville incident offered a classic example.

https://www.nj.com/opinion/index.ssf/2017/08/charlottesville_reporters_should_leave_the_opinion.html

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Nerd Prom: Film shows how cozy reporters are with White House

Barack Obama

BY EDDIE SCARRY | APRIL 10, 2015 | 12:44 PM

Reporters in the national press are all in bed with their powerful government sources, and that is proven each year during White House Correspondents’ Dinner week. That’s the conclusion of a new documentary directed by a former reporter at one of Washington, D.C.’s biggest news publications.

Patrick Gavin, who most recently worked as a journalist for Politico until leaving in 2014, chronicles in his film the evolution of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner from a small annual gathering of journalists and West Wing officials in the 1920s to the multimillion dollar week-long power-jockeying event it has become today.

“Nerd Prom: Inside Washington’s Wildest Week” is an indictment of the incestuous culture fostered by the Capitol’s elite journalists and the government officials they’re supposed to be holding accountable. In Gavin’s view, this connection is encapsulated by the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.

Gavin says in the movie that he created it to find out what the annual event is truly about. By the end, he’s bemoaning the loss of the dinner’s meaning, which is produced by the White House Correspondents’ Association and was originally intended to celebrate press freedom, as well as serve as a scholarship award ceremony for aspiring journalists.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/nerd-prom-film-shows-how-cozy-reporters-are-with-white-house/article/2562825

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Jorge Ramos: Reporters ‘Cozy with Power,’ Act Like They’re in a Club

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Jorge Ramos: Reporters ‘Cozy with Power,’ Act Like They’re in a Club

by Josh Feldman | 2:28 pm, May 28th, 2014

POLITICO’s Dylan Byers has a profile out todayof Univision/Fusion anchor Jorge Ramos, branding him as one of the most confrontational newsmen out there these days, on the heels of his confronting John Boehner over immigration reform.

And it’s that very issue where Ramos is very comfortable calling out both parties for lack of action. Ramos is also a very outspoken news anchor, a trait which has not done him any favors in Washington. Chuck Todd was asked about Ramos for the profile and simply said, “It’s not about us.” Another reporter who didn’t go on the record took a swipe at Ramos for not understanding the “difference between activism and journalism.”

Ramos, of course, doesn’t see it that way, and the way he views it, it’s the establishment reporters in Washington who are falling behind when it comes to doing journalism right.

“You turn on the TV, and you see very bland interviews. Journalists in the United States are very cozy with power, very close to those in power. They laugh with them. They go to the [White House] correspondents’ dinner with them. They have lunch together. They marry each other. They’re way too close to each other. I think as journalists we have to keep our distance from power.”

“I’m not seeing tough questions asked on American television,” he added later. “I’m not seeing those correspondents that would question those in power. It’s like a club. We are not asking the tough questions.”

Ramos has been critical of Republicans who haven’t prioritized immigration reform and Democrats likePresident Obama who have yet to deliver on their promises. And Ramos’ hard-hitting interview withRahm Emanuel earned him praise from Matt Drudge as “the last journalist standing.”

https://www.mediaite.com/online/jorge-ramos-reporters-cozy-with-power-act-like-theyre-in-a-club/

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Sharyl Attkisson: There Is Coordination Between Reporters And Politicians

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Sharyl Attkisson: There Is Coordination Between Reporters And Politicians
March 21, 2014 10:31 AM
By Chris Stigall

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – Chris Stigall talked to former CBS News Reporter Sharyl Attkisson this morning on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT about the trouble reporters have to deal with while covering politicians and the government, as well as the current state of investigative reporting.

Responding to comments regarding a Phoenix television reporter yesterday who initially claimed that the White House pre-screens questions from reporters, Attkisson said, “I wouldn’t surprised if sometimes there is that level of cooperation with some questions. If I need something answered from the White House and they won’t tell me, I’ll call our White House Correspondent. They’re friendlier with the White House Correspondents in general. So the White House Correspondent may ask Jay Carney or one of his folks about an issue and they will be told ‘ask that at the briefing and we’ll answer it.’ They want to answer it in front of everybody. They do know it’s coming and they’ll call on you. There’s that kind of coordination sometimes. I wouldn’t be shocked if there’s sometimes more coordination. I don’t think it’s everybody on every briefing, every day. I’m pretty sure it’s not. But I think people would be surprised at the level of cooperation reporters have in general with politicians.”

Listen to full podcast here…

She also said it is more and more difficult for investigative reporters to get their stories published or on the air because of the trouble it may cause.

“Nobody was interested in the stories. It didn’t seem to matter what the topic was. There’s sort of a problem all over, I talk to my colleagues in different mediums. There’s just a lot of pressure. Investigative reporting gets a lot of backlash. They don’t quite know how to deal with it. Why not just put on stories that don’t draw that kind of response?”

Attkisson also confirmed she’s working on a book about how stories are reported in the media.

https://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2014/03/21/sharyl-attkisson-there-is-coordination-between-reporters-and-politicians/