Comments on: Murdoch to media: You dug yourself a huge hole

News Corp.'s feisty CEO slams a culture of "complacency and condescension" but says a fix for an industry healing its self-inflicted wounds remains within reach.

[windandprayer]

when they become tabloids, that are more interested in making or creating news, they lose there readers,. Lets see, Iraq, bush election, the bailout, all subjects that were printed without reaserch, or to the facts. The media has become the mouth of special intrest, At least the "pravda" gave a clear picture of the weather

[Old55guy]

Both Seattle newspapers (Times @ PI) are so radical left wing anti-American that I quit reading them eight years ago. What little actual news they held was poorly done very few facts or details. I read many errors, but hey I?m just a stupid reader, right?
I am proud to be a moderate Democrat and 30 year Union member. I do thank God Bush and the rest of his cronies are on the way out. Newspapers need to report FACTS and keep editorials to the op-ed pages.

[AllennellA]

"the bond with its readers," How about Journalist Integrity? Murdoch, with its fake news channel, strives to create a community that get fed Murdoch's values. That they could get Rather fired over ONE improperly vetted document in an otherwise solid news story (ONE STORY in Rather's career), is not something a 'normal' person would be bragging about. He seeks to rouse the rabble. THAT is the bond he wants... he uses every propaganda technique in the book to create mad, mindless, minions. I'm disgusted with the other networks for folding with every bluff that Murdoch slaps down on the table.

[papajoem]

TOOMATH - you lost all credibility in your comment when you cited a study by HAAAVAAARD! Duh!

[TheMessngr]

Very good article. I think Murdoch hit the nail on the head.

[savvybuyer]

Oh please give me a break you apologists for the liberal media. Say, TooMath, whatever did happen to the punk that "hacked" into Governor Sarah Palin's private e-mail account. Suppose that he has gotten off scott free because his old man has Democrat connections! You don't see anything related to that story anymore! Just "sweep" it under the carpet so the jack-ass party doesn't get any poor press.

What planet are you from?

[10tacle]

The very idea of liberals like by 'toomath November 16, 2008 8:43 PM PST' denying that established media, from print to broadcast & cable news, is not left of center biased is pathetically laughable. Need any proof that it is? Liberals only complain of FoxNew as being biased to the Right! Of course FoxNews really is balanced, but to a far left liberal like "toomath", ANYTHING that provides BOTH sides of an argument is biased. It's like sitting in the left wing end zone and complaining about the ball moving away from you towards the 50 yard line. Liberals really don't think much - they emotion their way through thought. In any event, I surmise this "toomath" character failed to read the LA Times stroy on media bias (yes - LA TIMES!!) done by UCLA political science and media professors, which confirmed that the there is in fact a definitive left wing bias in this nation's major media outlets. Putting your head in the sand will not make stubborn facts go away, and we all know that facts to liberals are STUBBORN things.

[spiker5]

Murdoch is right of course, but I thought he WAS the media. In fact, I have a bone to pick with him about the media's treatment of Ron Paul during the primary elections. Because the word was put out to "deep six" the Ron Paul candidacy, we ended up with what looked more like an episode of "American Idol" than a serious election. The consequence is that Murdoch and the rest of the prime time media "dug a hole" for America.

[81w10]

Several years ago I saw an interview done by a reporter who was talking with college students at Univ of NY. One student he interviewed was a journalism major. The reporter asked the student why she was pursuing a degree in journalism. Her reply was that she liked to write and she wanted to make a difference in the world.

The reporter did not challenge her comments. He did not point out that the job of a reporter is not just to write ... it is to investigate, probe, check and double-check, seek input from more than one source, etc. He did not point out that the job of a reporter is not to make a difference in the world ... it is to report on the facts that are verified and relevant to the news item.

When did the reporter forget how to be a reporter? What sort of slanted (either left or right makes no difference, slanted is slanted) articles may an unsuspecting reader expect the student to eventually produce and get published?

Yes, newspapers are dead, hoist on their own petard. When they cannot control themselves enough to keep opinions out of factual news, they are no longer worth the price they charge.

I don't mind the columnists or opinion writers; they are what they are and are usually up front about their own bias. This is healthy discourse. However, it is not NEWS.

I hope the journalism student was never given access to newsprint and ink.

On second thought, I don't care if she was, because I don't waste my time reading newspapers and news magazines any more. I simply do not trust the US press. I stick mainly with the on-line editions of the Times, the Telegraph and other UK news sources. They don't have a dog in our fight, so their articles tend to be factual reports, not biased opinion pieces.

And, if others of you out there are like me, we are PERISHING for want of the truth.

[concerned67]

As expected, the repiglicans will again trot out the 'elitist' tag whenever someone points out the plain fact that conservatives in this country are on average less intelligent then liberals. Repiglicans have turned the US into the only country where being intelligent, well-informed, and articulate is considered a political liability***************************

Let's see, who runs Wall Street, the banks, most of our large corporations.......the intelligent, well-informed, articulate? Maybe we need some types who are less greedy and use just basic good common sense......do they teach this at Harvard or Yale?

[Inreply]

It will never cease to amaze me how many people in the world are so set in thinking that they no longer look at things objectively. People blame everyone else for their problems. The right blames the left, the left blames the right , citizens are divided, what ever happened to critical thinking? Have we all grown so opinionated that we are not willing to listen to other point of views without insults and blaring. I think if we would honestly stop and look at this as observers instead of always taking the position, I am right, you are wrong, so @#$%^&, we might actually see that there is a different approach to our problems. I bet all of the world is chopping at the bit for the fall of the great America. Oh she was so proud for so long, but look at her implode, sheing is decaying from the inside out. We ought to be more concerned about the hatred within. That is what is eroding our Great Nation. This is being said with a sad heart and maybe a touch of optimism that someone out there will read this and pass it on. We should work together to rebuild our true Country. The one our founding fathers built. The one that says I am proud to be an American. We are now far away from the original pattern. Peace to you all.

[strole]

I believe this article by Howard Kurtz says it all. Especially the last couple of lines
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"""A Giddy Sense of Boosterism

By Howard Kurtz
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, November 17, 2008; C01



Perhaps it was the announcement that NBC News is coming out with a DVD titled "Yes We Can: The Barack Obama Story." Or that ABC and USA Today are rushing out a book on the election. Or that HBO has snapped up a documentary on Obama's campaign.

Perhaps it was the Newsweek commemorative issue -- "Obama's American Dream" -- filled with so many iconic images and such stirring prose that it could have been campaign literature. Or the Time cover depicting Obama as FDR, complete with jaunty cigarette holder.

Are the media capable of merchandizing the moment, packaging a president-elect for profit? Yes, they are.

What's troubling here goes beyond the clanging of cash registers. Media outlets have always tried to make a few bucks off the next big thing. The endless campaign is over, and there's nothing wrong with the country pulling together, however briefly, behind its new leader. But we seem to have crossed a cultural line into mythmaking.

"The Obamas' New Life!" blares People's cover, with a shot of the family. "New home, new friends, new puppy!" Us Weekly goes with a Barack quote: "I Think I'm a Pretty Cool Dad." The Chicago Tribune trumpets that Michelle "is poised to be the new Oprah and the next Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis -- combined!" for the fashion world.

Whew! Are journalists fostering the notion that Obama is invincible, the leader of what the New York Times dubbed "Generation O"?

Each writer, each publication, seems to reach for more eye-popping superlatives. "OBAMAISM -- It's a Kind of Religion," says New York magazine. "Those of us too young to have known JFK's Camelot are going to have our own giddy Camelot II to enrapture and entertain us," Kurt Andersen writes. The New York Post has already christened it "BAM-A-LOT."

[paragraphs removed due to this site's length restrictions]

"We're celebrating a moment as much as a man, I think," says Newsweek Editor Jon Meacham, whose new issue, out today, compares Obama to Lincoln. "Given our racial history, an hour or two of commemoration seems appropriate. But there is no doubt that the glow of the moment will fade, and I am sure the coverage will reflect that in due course."

One of the few magazines to strike a skeptical tone is the London-based Economist, which endorsed Obama. "With such a victory come unreasonably great expectations," its lead editorial says.

[[paragraphs removed due to this site's length restrictions]

The media would be remiss if they didn't reflect the sense of unadulterated joy that greeted Obama's election, both here and around the world, and the pride even among those who opposed him. Newspapers were stunned and delighted at the voracious demand for post-election editions, prompting The Washington Post and other papers to print hundreds of thousands of extra copies and pocket the change. (When else have we felt so loved lately?) Demand for inaugural tickets has been unprecedented. Barack is suddenly a hot baby name. Record companies are releasing hip-hop songs, by the likes of Jay-Z and Will.I.Am, with such titles as "Pop Champagne for Barack." Consumers, the Los Angeles Times reports, are buying up "Obama-themed T-shirts, buttons, bobblehead dolls, coffee mugs, wine bottles, magnets, greeting cards, neon signs, mobile phones and framed art prints."

A barrage of Obama-related books are in the works. Newsweek's quadrennial election volume is titled "A Long Time Coming: The Historic, Combative, Expensive and Inspiring 2008 Election and the Victory of Barack Obama." Publishers obviously see a bull market.

MSNBC, which was accused of cheerleading for the Democratic nominee during the campaign, is running promos that say: "Barack Obama, America's 44th president. Watch as a leader renews America's promise." What are viewers to make of that?

There is always a level of excitement when a new president is coming to town -- new aides to profile, new policies to dissect, new family members to follow. But can anyone imagine this kind of media frenzy if John McCain had managed to win?

Obama's days of walking on water won't last indefinitely. His chroniclers will need a new story line. And sometime after Jan. 20, they will wade back into reality."""

[Clankazoid]

The New York Times editorial page doesn't go " thud "; it goes " splat ".

[gariley1]

haven't changed - don't expect a change until "old school" moves on.

[ChukarCory]

This is a question for the gentlemen from Seattle, the 30 year Union Democrat; How do you feel about the Democrats trying to take away the secret union ballot?

[bob graham las vegas]

All Hail Rupert!!! What an outstanding observation and report. There are so many stories wanting a good reporter and most of them need to get outside and put color in their faces anyway. Like, "Where did the 12 billion dollars go that we were spoon fed, 'disappeared in Iraq'"? Start snooping, did it ever leave continental US? What were the serial numbers? (brand new bills, sequential serials) Who got the 2 trillion from Paulson? Hint, "Don't ask Paulson". Resolve either of these two and I guarantee a Nobel prize. We The People are very tired of beig spoon fed what they spoon feed you. 700 billion dollars needing receipts? Torture of prisoners? Election irregularities? Politicising of the judicial appointees? Do we need to map your days? God give me the chance, and the resouces available !!

[jippyjoe]

One evening in 1986 I was sitting watching the evening news about the attack on Grenada--I started out with Peter Jennings, then Dan Rather, and then ended up with Tom Brokaw, all giving their rationale and "opinion" on what the raid was all about?blatantly speculating from ear to ear. I thought--do I really need to subject myself to their ?expert? opinions if so, based on what? A bunch of hypothetical jargon! From that day forward I chose to never subject myself to individuals with little or no substance that includes all those forms of media that purposefully tilt a tale?frankly they were wasting my time. If I wanted to read a tabloid I would. Thankfully we have moved beyond the narrow perspective of the few for the perspective of the many?each of us having come to our own conclusions at different points in time. I find it quite refreshing that we are having this discussion?free from personal attacks and respecting one another?s opinions. If the only purpose of the current media is to play in a popularity contest barely reporting on the essentials and spending the balance of their time promoting some cause or an agenda for a buck, it begs the question?what will they do for a buck? I?m not being paid to write this, so obviously I am not motivated by money rather, I find it intellectually stimulating to discuss these sorts of things with other like-minded people and more particularly with people of depth. Differences of opinion among people of depth can coexist as long as they can eventually find common ground?at the very least if both parties agree to not discontinue the discussion, but if so, so be it. I may never convince you and you may never convince me but we can hopefully agree that the greatest loss in the media has been the loss of not just their ?trusted base? but their loss of true intellectual freedom!

[mikehill33]

Having worked for one of the world's largest newspaper chains, the lack of innovation is what killed big media.

I can remember

The battles between online being able to publish before the print edition (way to date yourselves into uselessness).

The web seen merely as a dumping ground, with content being re-purposed, but little else to draw visitors to not just view content, but to interact with this "new media".

In the nine years that have passed since I left the newspaper biz, sites like Craigslist, social media, and other highly interactive news sources and sites have KILLED traditional print shops who still rely on their brand equity, or even worse, living off the "fat" that was stored up in the print war chests from so many successful quarters of ad-revenue generated growth.

In my view, it was always about how to make online an integral part of the operations, and many newspaper chains simply wanted to cut it as close to the bone as possible (Dean Singleton, Gannett, etc..)

Murdoch is right, but doesn't offer any innovative solutions, which is a reflection on the industry.

[pilgrim49]

Apparently an inflammatory quote by the man who would Walmart world media (at minimum) is enough to trigger every paranoid wing-nut with a bruised ego into a comment on the evil socialist MSM who inflicted this terrible shared existence upon us.
Ha -ha. Wake up dorks, the joke's on you. You life of pathos can only lead to Alaska, refuge for the Final Days.(please go!)

[bob graham las vegas]

All Hail Rupert!!! What an outstanding observation and report. There are so many stories wanting a good reporter and most of them need to get outside and put color in their faces anyway. Like, "Where did the 12 billion dollars go that we were spoon fed, 'disappeared in Iraq'"? Start snooping, did it ever leave continental US? What were the serial numbers? (brand new bills, sequential serials) Who got the 2 trillion from Paulson? Hint, "Don't ask Paulson". Resolve either of these two and I guarantee a Nobel prize. We The People are very tired of beig spoon fed what they spoon feed you. 700 billion dollars needing receipts? Torture of prisoners? Election irregularities? Politicizing of the judicial appointees? Torture itself will get a Nobel. Do we need to map your days? God give me the chance, and the resources available !!