Michael Gerson waxes nostalgic in a column for The Washington Post.  In this column, he discusses the loss of objectivity in journalism.  He talks about the rise in partisan reporting and the reporting of stories without verification.  He then blames these occurrences on the internet and the rise in new forms of media.  As The Other McCain points out, Michael Gerson was never a member of the “objective media”.  He also has his chronology a bit backwards.

     The rise of alternative media as news sources did not precede and/or cause the partisanship of journalists.  The rise of alternative media merely exposed the bias of many traditional sources of information, therefore leading to their decline.  Fox News was one of the first sources to offer opinions and stories other than the lock step left “reality” offered up by the three main television networks, most newspapers, and many “news” magazines such as Time and Newsweek.  As more people discovered what they were missing, fewer people sought out these sources as primary sources of news. 

     The internet made finding information exponentially easier than it had ever been.  When someone claimed they had never said something, anyone could easily go online and find out exactly what had been said and when.

     Newspapers and stations like MSNBC could try to change their fate by reporting the news with some semblance of objectivity.  However, they seem dead set against this.  Just in the past few months, Van Jones was forced to resign, ACORN’s various illegal activities were exposed by amateur journalists,and a major blow has been struck against the “science” of global warming/cooling/climate change.  Coverage of these stories was nearly nonexistent outside of Fox News and the internet.  When is the last time a major story was actually broken by MSNBC or CNN?  Glenn Beck, who is not a “journalist”, has broken more stories this year than the alphabet networks combined.

     In a continuation of left wing line walking, the networks are still refusing to refer to Major Nidal Malik Hasan as a jihadist terrorist.  Today, on Memeorandum, I found another example of this.  Justin Franchi Solondz, who is on the FBI’s most wanted list, has been captured and jailed in China.   Justin Franchi Solondz is wanted in the United States for acts of “eco-terrorism” during his affiliation with the Earth Liberation Front (E.L.F.).  You can view the charges here.  Not only has he already been captured in China, after 3 years of running, he has already been tried and sentenced.  This should be a major story, a terrorist on the FBI’s most wanted list has been captured. This story is barely being covered. Could it have something to do with his status as an “eco-terrorist”?  In fact, in the New York Times article on his capture, he isn’t even called a terrorist, he is called an “environmental activist”.  The Headline reads’ “China Jails Environmentalist Wanted in U.S.”.  The article then goes on to give an in-depth discussion of Solondz’s life on the run across three continents.  It reads like a fascinating tale of adventure.  His charges are briefly discussed at the end of the article, followed by his parents’ proclamation that their son is not a terrorist and his acts should not even be considered terrorism because of their motives.

     According to United States Law, terrorism is “premeditated, politically motivated perpetrated against noncombatant targets by subnational groups or clandestine agents”.  Shooting an abortion doctor because you are against abortion fits this definition.  So does burning down a Horticulture Center at the University of Washington.  The fact that many newspapers, magazines and “news” networks are only interested in reporting on one of these stories is the reason for their decline.  The “journalists” involved could save themselves by returning to objectivity.  Instead, they seemed inclined to ride their left leaning train all the way to government ownership.

Update:  In another example of selective coverage, David Neiwert at Crooks and Liars compares a random loser to Muslim terrorists.  David complains that the arrest of Mark Campano of Ohio has received very little attention frm the media. On the surface, this may sound similar to my complaints about the (lack of) coverage on the arrest of Justin Franchi Solondz. If you look just slightly deeper though, you will see that Mark Campano is a local, multi-time loser (In an interesting twist, even this  anti-government bomber has yet to be labeled a “terrorist”).  He certainly should be arrested and sent to jail for a long period of time, but he warants no more attention than arresting any other local thug of a left or right wing variety.  Justin Franchi Solondz was on the FBI’s most wanted list and an international fugitive. The Other McCain sums up Mark Campano nicely.  All terrorists are not created equal.