Sunday, October 6, 2013

Fox News Errs, and The New York Times Investigates the Shutdown's Origins

Here are a couple of items related to our reading and discussion of Blur. Reading and thinking about them in relation to Blur and Wag the Dog could help you think more sharply about the relevant issues you'll have to write about on Tuesday's in-class essay, but these are optional.

I just came across this piece about Fox News making just the kind of mistake Kovach and Rosenstiel take pains to discuss in Blur. The headline is somewhat amusing, but points to the all too real problem of rushing to broadcast and appealing to a narrowly focused audience. Because Fox News is in the business of the "journalism of affirmation," it makes a mistake typical of the "journalism of assertion." Don't just watch the video; read the article to the end.

This report from The New York Times reveals how the desire to defund the Affordable Care Act (pejoratively known as "Obamacare") became linked to shutting down the federal government. It's long and detailed. If you read it, think about how Kovach and Rosenstiel would assess its strengths and limitations.

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