Kristof on media

Here's a link to the Kristof piece. He complains about a number of trends he doesn't particularly like.

...the climate for freedom of the press in the U.S. feels more ominous than it has for decades. ...it's also crucial for us to reflect on why this is happening now - and a major reason, I think, is that we in the news media are widely perceived as arrogant, out of touch and untrustworthy. ...public support for the news media has all but evaporated.

Journalists who have been painstakingly "neutral" toward American culture are starting to realize what it means when American culture is "neutral" toward them.

In this kind of environment, it's not surprising that journalists are headed for jail. The safety net for American journalism throughout history has been not so much the First Amendment - rather, it's been public approval of the role of the free press. Public approval is our life-support system, and it is now at risk.

Anyone who's read various critiques of the press has heard about the lack of diversity. Milbloggers have pointed out that news articles frequently contain basic errors that would never have made it past anyone with even an ounce of military experience. But significantly, they make it past everyone in the newsroom.

We also need more diverse newsrooms. When America was struck by race riots in the late 1960's, major news organizations realized too late that their failure to hire black reporters had impaired their ability to cover America. In the same way, our failure to hire more red state evangelicals limits our understanding of and ability to cover America today. I think we're nuts not to regulate handguns more strictly, but I also think that gun owners have a point when they complain that gun issues often seem to be covered by people who don't know a 12-gauge from an AR-15.

Interestingly, especially given the title of Bernard Goldberg's second book on the press, Kristof writes:

If one word can capture the public attitude toward American journalists, I'm afraid it's "arrogant." Not surprisingly, I think that charge is grossly unfair. But it's imperative that we respond to that charge - not by dismissing it, but by working far more diligently to reconnect with the public.

Now this is extremely penetrating. It's imperative to respond to the charge of arrogance in some way other than by being arrogant.