Certainly not for the money! (none of us are paid.) Just about everybody knows that the political parties and leaders in the U.S. are messed up. Most agree that campaign contributions and TV ads have something to do with it, as do structural changes in the economy that have everyone scared for their jobs.
Many would assign even a fair chunk of blame to the media. But they don't do squat about it.
We think that the news media and the entertainment media are a major stumbling block to real political reform, if not THE major stumbling block. And we're trying to help matters by getting good information out in front of voters.
In 1992, we ran a couple of very blunt TV ads, to get people talking about important issues. This year, we are using the new technology of the World Wide Web to put out much more detailed info directly, where it can be read for almost free by anyone with a computer and a Web browser.
Though we may sound negative, we are very optimistic. We think that if you put out good information on politics and present it well, people can make up their own minds and choose well. That's why we don't need to endorse anybody.
- huge corporate chains that control all of TV and nearly every newspaper;
- the phony type of "objectivity" defined as "quote a Republican insider and a Democrat insider and make no further effort to piece together the truth."
Real objectivity does NOT mean the reporter has no opinion. Anyone with a pulse has an opinion. The reporter's JOB is to have an opinion, to aggressively dig up the facts, and apply his or her carefully honed opinion to sort it all out.
Politics is always murky. There are always allegations and denials, spins and flat out lies. The passive approach of "just quote each side" is very easily manipulated, and it happens every day, constantly.
Objectivity means the reporter is ultimately alone with the facts, and must make a SUBJECTIVE decision what to write. They must be independent of organized agendas and interest groups, not independent of their own judgement. Good reporters are always out on a limb, and their reputation will depend on their accuracy and fairness.
The best and fairest reporting today in America is the Wall Street Journal's, despite it's open conservative bias and ties to Republicans. (I exclude the editorial page, of course.) Despite who pays their rent, they report fairly and aggressively on their friends as well as their enemies. They print dirt on Gingrich and Alexander as well as Clinton; and though they have scrutinized every inch of the Whitewater scandal and sell books hyping it, they aren't afraid to run news articles saying it might be overblown. Their biases are open for all to see and adjust for.
If every city in America had a newspaper that good, politics would not be a problem, and we'd be solving some of our very big problems.
- the absurd influence given to Washington insider pundits, and a corresponding focus on mechanics and strategies of campaigns;
- obsessive focus on polls and the "horse race" aspects of races, which has seduced most politicians into being followers, not leaders;
- jaded news coverage that requires candidates to run TV ads to get attention, which requires them to beg for money full time. Real leaders won't put up with that, and they are refusing to run, or are retiring;
- and lack of real investigation and reporting. Among newspapers, only the Wall Street Journal and the 2 Washington papers investigate aggressively. Magazines (including such unlikely candidates as Vanity Fair) have taken over most of the investigations, and these are usually ignored by the mainstream press. Many of our best items were published in relatively mainstream magazines such as Financial World, The Nation, and National Review, without being repeated in the New York Times, Time or TV news.
We could go on, but we're all too busy trying to make a living. So are you, probably. We love to hear feedback, criticism, or support via email.
Or contact us at these more traditional addresses:
Real People For Real Change
PO Box 471258
San Francisco, California 94147
Email: info@realchange.org
Paid for by Real People For Real Change PAC and not authorized by any candidate or candidate's committee.
Real People For Real Change is registered with the Federal Election Commission as a non-affiliated, independent political action committee.