Myth of the Liberal Media

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The current historical moment in American journalism is hardly a happy one. Journalists trying to do honest work find themselves under siege from several sides simultaneously. Corporate conglomerates increasingly view journalism as “software,” valuable only insofar as it contributes to the bottom line. In the mad pursuit for audience and advertisers, the quality of the news itself becomes degraded, leading journalists to alternating fits of self-loathing and self-pity. Meanwhile, they face an administration with a commitment to secrecy unmatched in modern U.S. history. And to top it all off, conservative organizations and media outlets lie in wait, eager to pounce on any journalist who tries to give voice to almost any uncomfortable truth about influential American institutions (in other words, to behave as an honest reporter) throwing out the old but effective accusation of “liberal bias” in order to protect the powerful from scrutiny.

Conservatives have proved over and over that “working the refs” works. It results in a cowed media willing to give right-wing partisans a pass on many of their most egregious actions and ideologically inspired assertions. Successfully deploying this tactic since the days of Richard Nixon and Spiro Agnew, conservatives have won large influence and power. For this reason, liberals and centrists need to resist these charges every bit as strongly as they do Bush’s latest tax cut for the wealthy or efforts to despoil the environment on behalf of the oil and gas industries.

This decades-long conservative ideological offensive constitutes a significant threat to journalism’s historic role in uncovering abuses, protecting citizens, and ensuring our freedoms. Tough-minded reporting, as the legendary Washington Post editor Ben Bradlee explains, “is not for everybody.” It is not, he says, “for those who feel that all’s right with the world, not for those who fear the violent contradictions of our time.” But it is surely necessary for any society where people want to assume the historically honorable role of “democrat,” “republican,” or even that wonderfully old-fashioned title, “citizen.”

Queens, New York–born Eric Alterman is a press watchdog and culture critic with a keen sense of style. His 1999 book, It Ain’t No Sin to Be Glad You’re Alive: The Promise of Bruce Springsteen, won the 1999 Stephen Crane Literary Award, while Sound and Fury: The Making of the Punditocracy (1992) garnered the 1992 George Orwell Award. Holder of a Cornell B.A. in history and government, an M.A. in international relations from Yale, and a Ph.D. in history from Stanford, Alterman has been a columnist or contributing editor for Worth, Rolling Stone, Elle, Mother Jones, World Policy Journal, and The Sunday Express (London). He’s also a digital communicator: His “Altercation” Web log runs on MSNBC.com. There, and in his Stop the Presses media column for The Nation, Alterman regularly challenges conventional wisdom on the media and political issues. A new book, When Presidents Lie: Deception and Its Consequences, is forthcoming. This article was adapted from Alterman’s new book, What Liberal Media? The Truth About Bias and the News (Basic), and excerpted from The Nation (Feb. 24, 2003). Subscriptions: $39.97/yr. (47 issues) from Box 55149, Boulder, CO 80322.

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