Opinion
 

Don't believe the type

By Keenan Singleton

Believe me. Trust me. 

You've heard these unspoken whispers. These are the first and last words of a contract that every media outlet tenders to you and me every day.

But the 'X' isn't on a piece of pulp; sometimes it is placed right in the middle of your back.

Too often too many don't see the two-faced deceptive nature of the media.

The news is not an end-all, it's more of a guide, allowing you to do more research and fact-checking on your own time, from your own perspective. The lazy blindly accept everything that comes from the media. 

Don't believe (all) the type. 

Remember when we learned, again, the facts of life, courtesy of The New York Times' Jayson Blair. He was dismissed from his reporter's job for fabricating quotes and lying.

Some reporters take it leaps further, performing seemingly God-like acts. Janet Cooke summoned the God-like passion and created an eight-year-old heroin addict/dealer named Jimmy. 

Cooke's goose was cooked; she was let go from The Washington Post after the facts were uncovered. 

Former Boston Globe columnist Patricia Smith, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize no less, was let go for spawning several sources and quotes for her columns. 

Smith's colleague at the Globe, Mike Barnicle, was also let go for the same offenses. 

Some invent games: Jay Forman, who, like Blair, also wrote for The New York Times and reported on "monkeyfishing," which was, oddly enough, literally about fishing for monkeys.

The list goes on and on. Stephen Glass was released from his post as an associate editor at The New Republic for, you guessed it, creating people, places, anything to craft a story.

The Sacramento Bee's Dennis Love, a political writer, was fired for fabrications. 

So were David Cragin and Mark Hornung.

Over the last decade, the list of fabricated and misleading news has softened my trust and faith in the media. 

As someone in the business of reporting the news, I still believe that most news coverage is, in fact, based on fact and is important to a mobile and informed society. And most news can be backed up with reputable sources.

But not all of it. Which, sadly, is what the average American believes.

The news is an acquaintance ? not your friend. 

When you're peppered with endless amounts of coverage remember take it with a grain of salt; it's better for your heart.

Believe me.

Singleton, a columnist for The Daily Cougar, 
can be reached at k_singleton@yahoo.com.