SPJ national update IV: The enemy within; a crime on campus; and it seemed funny at the time. Conditions in Iraq appear to be deteriorating so badly that CIA officials are increasingly leaking information, signaling a new dynamic in press coverage. Robert Novak noted this in a column Sept. 27, "Is CIA at War With Bush?" Another example: a lengthy article Sept. 30 by veteran Washington Post war-at-home watchers Dana Priest and Thomas E. Ricks, based mainly on anonymous insiders. More here. ... The University of Kentucky has quietly adopted a policy that lets campus crime victims keep their names off police reports and allows UK to block disclosure of the reports as preliminary. Critics say the policy is contrary to longstanding practice at UK and elsewhere, and threatens open government by preventing the media from monitoring criminal investigations and reporting on public-safety issues. More here and here. ... The Texas Supreme Court ruled, 8-0, on Sept. 3 in favor of the Dallas Observer and against two Denton County public officials who sued the alternative newspaper over a 1999 satire it published. The story on the fictional arrest of a 6-year-old girl parodied the actual arrest of a 13-year-old Ponder student for reading a graphic Halloween story to the class.
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Bias In, Bias Out: One Man's Ochs is Another Man's Gore
The discourse was civil at SPJ's September program on bias in the media, but the opinions ranged as wide as the gap between Rush Limbaugh and Al Franken.
Without doubt, Star-Telegram reader advocate David House said, journalists are biased. Reporters and editors have biases of all kinds -- but generally not the perceived liberal or conservative bent that raises such reader ire. Rather, he said, it is a bias born of curiosity about the unending collision between the forces of change and the status quo. "We are by and large professionals. We 'empty our heads' when we go cover something." And when newsapapers write something that readers consider biased, often "it's because they want us to publish their bias" rather than looking for objective information.
So why all the outcry about bias in the media? Because, House said, readers "have been told and told and told" about it by talk radio, the almost exclusive province of the right wing.
Star-Telegram reader and frequent critic Bill Low probably wouldn't agree with that. It's not true, he said, that all the claims of bias are simply the result of readers' own skew. Still, he said, reporting in the 21st century is much less biased than in the early days of this country, when few journalists were politically independent.
Low frequently takes journalists to task for using what he calls loaded languagae when talking about the right, while letting the left off too lightly. He said, for instance, that reporters should always identify Jim Wright not only as a former U.S. House speaker, but as one who resigned in disgrace. He praised the Star-Telegram, though, for doing "an incredible leadership job in addressing these issues head-on."
TCU political scientist Adam Schiffer disagreed strongly with the idea that liberal bias pervades the media. Studies "have failed to find any consistent left lean" in the press, he said. "For every example of liberal bias you can throw at me, I can throw back a conservative one. ... Liberals do complain [about right-wing bias] but you just don't hear about it. Think about it: Who has the power to put such perception" into the national consciousness? Answer: "4,000 AM talk show hosts." Name a liberal commentator, he challenged the audience. "The blank stare you just gave me said all you need to know about the conservative domination of the commentator landscape."
Schiffer also made the point that, in the past, journalism was about truth-seeking, not absolute objectivity. That brought Low back into the fray. "I think we have to be careful about journalists setting up as the ultimate source of truth," Low said. He talked about Fox News, which he said admitted its bias. "Maybe that's what we need -- journalists who let it all hang out ... who say, 'Here's my bias' and [admit] that it's all opinion."
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PEOPLE & PLACES
IABC/Dallas honored Texas Wesleyan U. with a Bronze Quill Award of Excellence for an underwater scuba graduation story crafted by communications director Lisa Fellers ("we received national coverage for a PR event planned within seven days with zero budget ... woo-hoo!"). As part of pre-commencement festivities this spring, Wesleyan's first scuba graduate was "finned" underwater, then swam through a cordon of fellow classmates and transfered his tassel, attached to his scuba mask, from right to left. Fellers hired a videographer to film the event, and all four local networks arrived early and stayed an hour after it was over for a copy of the raw footage. Knight Ridder and the AP picked up the story, as did TV stations from Austin to Oklahoma City to Fresno, Calif., to Honolulu. ...
MAIN ST. Fort Worth Arts Festival has chosen Witherspoon Advertising and Public Relations to promote the 2005 edition April 7-10. Scheduled one week earlier than previous years, it will feature more than 100 live performances and work by 200 artists. An average of 430,000 people annually attend what is billed as the largest free, four-day visual arts and entertainment festival in the Southwest. ...
Star-Telegram photo globetrotter and UTA Shorthorn ex Tom Pennington won first place in the Southern Newspaper Publishers Association's Photo of the Year Contest. His photo of a soldier approaching a sleeping boy during an Iraqi raid was selected from 344 entries. ... Diane Norwood has joined the public relations department at Medical Center of Arlington. ... Annette Kearns won a copy of Seth Godin's book, "Permission Marketing," for her participation in IABC/Fort Worth's October newsletter survey. ... UTA Shorthorn ex and former Star-Telegram intern Caren Penland is a runner-up in the prestigious Roy W. Howard National Reporting Competition and Seminar, sponsored by the Scripps Howard Foundation. She was recognized at an awards dinner last month in Bloomington, Ind. ...
San Antonio was radioland Oct. 30 as the Texas Radio Hall of Fame celebrated 2004 inductees Chuck Blore, John Borders, Clint Formby, Skipper Lee Frazier, Steve Hicks, Norm Hitzges, Suzie Humphreys, Tom Joyner, Ben Laurie, Ron McAlister, Laura Morris, Gary Owens, Charles Payne, Jay Randolph, Ron Rogers, Michael Spears, John Tyler, Ricci Ware, Carl Wiglesworth, the "Charlie and Harrigan" team of Jack Woods, Ron Chapman, Paul Menard, Jack (Murray) Auldridge, Dan McCurdy and Brice Armstrong, and deceased honorees Herb Humphries, Frank Fallon and Dave Morris.
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GET A JOB
Immotion Studios seeks a production artist ($12-$14/hour) and a mid-level designer ($15-$17/hour). Requirements: bachelor's degree or five years experience in a Mac environment and advanced Photoshop/Illustrator ability. Photo and illustration skills preferred. Must be a team player. Contact marketing director Lindsey Hurr, (817) 731-4176. ... Bob Hill at Hill & Company in Bedford seeks an entry-level PR person and another with 2-3 years experience. E- bob@HillandCompany.com. ... Ketchum Dallas seeks a "hotshot AE, SAE or newly minted account supervisor to work on the FedEx Kinko's business. ... at least five years of agency experience, a tough hide, the ability to multi-task, willingness to be on-site at FEK's Galleria offices a couple of times a week, strong writing skills, very solid organizational skills -- in short, we're looking for the perfect agency person (and aren't we all?)." E- the person talking at teresa.henderson@ketchum.com. ...
The architectural and engineering firm Freese and Nichols needs a proposal writer in its Dallas office. A degree in journalism, PR or related field is required, with experience developing A/E proposals preferred. Graphic design experience a plus. Send résumé to Human Resources, Freese and Nichols, 4055 International Plaza, Suite 200, Fort Worth 76109-4895, fax (817) 735-7491, hr@freese.com. ... The Kansas City Star seeks an entry-level city government reporter. Good job for recent college grads; previous internships or leadership at campus paper preferred. Send clips to Michael Nelson, AME/Kansas, 8455 College Blvd., Overland Park, Kan. 66210. ...
