The Influencing Machine: Brooke Gladstone on the Media

The American media business is “a creature of politics and technology” (103). The relationship between the American government and media goes back to the country's founding. Two things predicate this relationship: the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of the press and the government's fear that "discordant speech" (21) about the government threatens the nation's safety. Because of this, the American government has a history of suppression and manipulation of the American media.

The government argues that “certain rights must be suspended” when the nation faces “a mortal threat” (21); this kind of suppression works best during wartime. Multiple American presidents passed laws during wartime to prevent any kind of speech that could “harm the war effort” (22) or dampen patriotism; this kind of suppression often gets a pass with consumers because of concerns about national security. However, sometimes—as during the New York Times' coverage of President Nixon's Watergate scandal or the embedded reporting on the atrocities of the Vietnam War—the media can “expose corruption and build pressure for change” (33). These changes come in the form of policy, or the access level afforded to reporters.

Additionally, Congress is “the safest landing strip for journalists who would challenge or criticize the White House” (45). Because most government-critical stories originate with the actions of elected representatives, covering them often keeps reporters free from “charges of bias” (45). However, when reporters sniff around touchy subjects like Big Tobacco or the Patriot Act, the White House often exerts pressure on congresspeople not to speak with the press. The government can inadvertently block the media from reporting on certain issues.

Despite these tensions, consumers expect the media to report objectively. Gladstone discusses at length the various internal and external biases the media are subject to that can affect objectivity, including political opinion. Some reporters don't want to “take a position, even in [their] own mind” (108) about political issues, while others believe journalists should not and cannot be “political eunuchs” (109). Either way, the majority of consumers sense partiality: A 2009 poll found that 60% of respondents “charged news organizations with bias” (60), and mostly a liberal bias. Many consumers tend to seek out media outlets that already reflect their political view, and entire cable news channels report “through obvious political prisms” (110).