y, is merely "blaming the messenger"; the press claims no responsibility for the world that it displays.Journalists and reporters abuse the claim to their first amendment rights, the first instinct of many journalists is to cry "First Amendment! Which is like the military's reflexive use of "national security" to rebut any criticism of how it does its work.(Fallows 184). With the first amendment protecting the media from any criticisms, they have no conscience in what the show or say. The media is no better than any other sitcom on TV. They do what they have to do for an audience.Fallows hypothesis that contemporary commercial journalism is essentially a mix of crime stories, celebrity profiles, consumer news pitched at the upper middle class, and warmed over press releases is completely and utterly plausible. Everyone knows that big-time journalists have become powerful and prominent. We see them shouting at presidents during White House press conferences. We hear them offering instant thumbs-up/thumbs-down verdicts a few seconds after a politician completes a speech. We know that they swarm from one hot news event to the next--from a press conference by Gennifer Flowers, to a riot site in Los Angeles, to congressional hearings on a Supreme Court nominee, to the arraignment of Tonya Harding. Fallows criticisms on media are made on account of his concern for its negative impact on democracy. A form of government in which the right to make political decisions is exercised directly by the whole body of citizens, acting under procedures of majority rule is democracys definition according to the Encyclopedia Britannica. The key phrase in the definition being the whole body of citizens. Democracy in Fallows case refers to the interest and aid of the everyday citizen that roams our mighty streets of America. When he criticizes the media, it is on the American citizens behalf. He proclaims that the media has strayed away from its purpose...
