This post includes a 9/9 update at the end. - JML
In the streets of Kabul and Jakarta, angry Muslims are protesting against the United States, not because of military action, foreign policy initiatives, or even because of any controversial statements coming from U.S. government officials. These protests were ignited by the Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, whose pastor, Terry Jones, has called for a national “Burn a Koran Day” on the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. Two U.S. commanders, including Gen. David Petraeus, have publicly expressed concern that this event will endanger American soldiers and might even undermine efforts to bring peace to Afghanistan. Pastor Jones says he’s sorry if young men and women are killed, but his congregation has to take a stand against Islam because “it isn’t going away.”
As appalled and sickened as I am by people who claim to represent the Prince of Peace (and who name their church the “Dove Center”) yet proceed to incite violence with acts of hate, my frustration over this spectacle is not entirely with Pastor Jones or his flock. The Dove World Outreach Center is not a large church with wide influence. It isn’t even an established congregation in the Gainesville community. It is a splinter group totaling 50 people. That’s right – just 50 people. In a democracy that values freedom of speech, a small percentage of crackpots and hate mongers will always demand a hearing. That is a price of our freedom. The question is, why is the action of this tiny extremist sect getting so much attention? Answer: the 24-hour cable news cycle.
On most days, there is not enough news to fill up 24 hours of on-air broadcasts. So cable news shows have to keep digging for good juicy stories, and events like “Burn a Koran Day” receive a level of scrutiny that is completely out of proportion to their importance. Granted, Terri Jones has earned a reputation for making provocative statements to get media attention, so covering him is not exactly like finding a needle in a haystack. But is it really in the public interest to reward his behavior? Or is the press only too glad to fan the flame he started (even while expressing moral outrage at his bigotry)?
The recent flap over the percentage of people who believe the president is a Muslim is also a media-created controversy. How many people would have even had the thought that Obama was Muslim if pollsters had not posed the question, thereby making it a viable option? Furthermore, how likely would the question have been included in polls paid for by media outlets if Cable News talking heads had not repeatedly discussed – and even encouraged – the perception that Obama is a Muslim (all the while insisting that Obama is, in fact, a Christian)?
The 24-hour news beast is never satisfied. Reporting the news isn’t enough. Today, the media are in the business of making news. In fact, the news has increasingly become the news. One news channel displays a talking head from another news channel, then brings on its own pundits to debate the propriety of what was said on the other channel. Punditry, once a small group of veteran journalists musing over the impact of the week’s biggest stories, has now become a potent force in shaping the news. This creates a journalistic hall of mirrors.
Not long ago, I was surfing the web looking for information about bi-partisan negotiation between the President and Republican members of Congress over an important piece of legislation. To my frustration, the story I was looking for was absent from most on-line news outlets. Yet these same sources prominently featured stories about new poll numbers revealing declining public support for the president. Instead of reporting on what was actually happening, the “news” was public perception of what was happening. Think about the absurdity of that kind of journalism. Instead of informing the public about what is actually happening so that we have enough information to form opinions, news organizations would rather report on how the public reacts to news it hasn’t yet received. The old saw that “perception is more important than reality” is no longer an observation about human nature – it has become journalistic doctrine. Perception, not reality, is the news.
I’m overstating the case, but only a little bit. There are still good journalistic outlets that at least aim to be objective – and they are mostly the stalwarts of print journalism, such as the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, and the Christian Science Monitor. I also find that, if I really want the straight scoop on television, I’m better off waiting for a broadcast of BBC World News or BBC America. Oddly enough, government-funded media (including National Public Radio and the Public Broadcasting System) tend to be more objective than privately owned networks. But the trend of late clearly favors so-called “advocacy journalism,” whose aim is to filter all news through a particular ideological bias, whether left or right, and shape public opinion. This is not helpful to our democracy. It discourages dialogue and undermines civility. And now, it seems, the Cable News beast is actually shaping the world’s perception of Americans, and not for the better.
If more American lives are lost because of the despicable action of a few extremists in Florida, don’t just be angry at the religious bigotry on display. The blame lies as much with over-eager media that would rather give oxygen to a dangerous fire than let it die for lack of air. Now, “Burn a Koran Day” is a big event. It will attract dueling demonstrations and stress Gainesville law enforcement. It will no doubt be broadcast around the world with who knows what repercussions in the Middle East. Pastor Jones couldn’t have done it alone.
Copyright 2010 by J. Mark Lawson
UPDATE: It's early Thursday evening, and Terri Jones, after a personal phone call from Defense Secretary Gates, a visit from the FBI, the local police department threatening to send him a bill for the cost of security, and a tidal wave of protest from around the world, has called off his Koran bonfire, but not before he found a way to save face. He stood in front of cameras alongside Imam Muhammed Musri of the Islamic Society of Central Florida and took credit for striking a deal with Imam Faisal in New York City to cancel the burning in exchange for Faisal moving the Park51 mosque. Hardly a half hour had passed before Faisal announced that he hadn't even talked to Jones, and there was no deal. I don't know where this is going, but I am hopeful that this attention hog will calm down for awhile. I also hope that decision-makers in the media will reflect on the consequences of the literal and figurative firestorm that we only barely averted.
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