Journalists thrive on conflict. The old journalism maxim that "man bites dog'' is a better story than "dog bites man'' overlooks an even more fundamental tenet of the craft: "Man pets dog'' is not a story at all.Quoting Tom Rosentiel:
"What is lost here are the nuances,'' said Tom Rosenstiel, director of the Project for Excellence in Journalism, a nonpartisan group that studies media practices.
"There is genuine conflict here,'' Rosenstiel said. At the same time, "it's not unusual to see absurd overreaching -- in a desperate, craven attempt to keep the audience watching. Words like 'startling' and 'bone tingling,' or 'knock your socks off' have the effect of making TV news kind of numbing. It's the medium that's always crying wolf.''
Rather than a genuine mea culpa this is more of an excuse for flagrant media partisanship.
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