Posted by
PDX Dave on Sunday, February 21, 2010 6:03:39 PM
After viewing the Winter Olympics in Vancouver, I have come to the realization that sports reporting is actually superior journalism than "news" journalism today.
Watching American network coverage of the competition, it dawned on me that these American journalists unapologetically favored their nation's athletes, while giving fair coverage of the competition as well. After consideration, I wondreed if they were doing so to cull the favor of their American audience. I decided that, no, they honestly WANTED America to win and that was unabashedly reflected in their coverage of the events.
There is nothing wrong with that. Indeed, there is a lot RIGHT with that and I wish it were true in the newsroom as well as the sports department.
Imagine a return to the days of WWII when American journalists wanted America to WIN a war. Today an American journalist would be summarily fired if he even hinted at a desire to see his own country's military win a war. Today's journalist sees his occupational "neutrality" as a higher calling than any fealty to his kin or homeland. So extreme has this mislaid sense of priority become, that today's American journalist will default to advocating against his homeland and FOR THE ENEMY, in his effort to giving them "fair" press.
It is a perversion of professional ethics to place them above fealty to ones' kin and country. Especially when that country is the United States which is unique in human history for shedding the blood of their beloved to protect the freedom of other peoples.
Sad to say that your average sports reporter has higher journalistic standards than all of the newsroom combined.