Some of Nothing

Open Letter to the US News Media
Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Dear Press Corps,
We, The People, demand a new kind of political reporting. One that goes beyond theatrics and "gotcha" questions and answers. We want political reporting that isn't composed mostly of innuendo and simplistic narratives but, instead, is educational, analytical, and thought-provoking. You seem to think that real political issues are boring and impersonal. We think that these issues deeply impact us. And it's not the issues that are banal but it's the way they're often reported that makes them seem so. They're reported as if they have no relevant impact. As if they're only footballs being tossed back and forth between two teams and as if the only winners and losers are those that are directly playing the game. The American people are being treated as cheerleaders and observers, but the reality is that, at this point, we are the real losers of this game. So, we want it to end.

We want the egregious personality-based politics that were exemplified by the first half of the recent ABC presidential debate to be replaced with a politics that directly connects someone's positions with his/her principles. Rather than observing how well presidential candidates can spin their ways out of superficial conflicts, we want to see how well they can explicate their approaches to meaningful issues. We want fewer opportunities for talking points and more opportunities for logical and in-depth explanations (the word "why?", for example, can be quite useful once in a while). Thinking and explaining takes time; we know that. So, we want you to replace the time you take covering our reactions to controversies created by you with coverage of thoughtful responses to complex questions. Many of us are actually smarter than you think. Now, you need to prove that you are actually smarter than we think.

Sincerely,
The People

UPDATE: I am getting petition-happy these days (so many issues, so little time). If we get some signatures, I'll submit this letter to major media outlets.
Sign here! And pass it along.

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Nothing New byslag at 8:02 PM