The Monkey King's Used Primate Emporium and Book Reviews

previous - next - random review

Pete Hamill, �News is a Verb - Journalism at the End of the Twentieth Century�

Started February 19 � Finished February 20, 2003; 105 pages. Posted 26 February 2003

Over the last two years or so I have let my readership of newspapers decline. Part of that was because of all these damn books I�ve been reading, obviously, but newspapers in general had really started to bore me, a frightening thing to happen to somebody who wants to go into journalism.

This year I�ve tried to get back into it, subscribing to the Mercury News and picking up the New York Times four times a week. I�m glad I�ve done so, as it reminds me how important it is to stay informed, especially since the important stories always seem to be buried in the back, with the important information buried in the middle of the story in the back.

But still, I�ve already fallen behind on this project, especially since the New York Times is so dense with information. And worse, with our impending war with Iraq, I�m noticing how stories are slanted to support the United States, even if it�s done timidly. There are certain things I just don�t understand.

For instance, the Associated Press Stylebook recommends that governmental titles decrees that the reporter always gives the full name of whomever is referenced, and then every following mention uses person�s last name only. Most articles I read or see on television refer to �President Bush� and �Saddam.� (Note: The NY Times does not do this, but they have their own style guide and in fact are one of the few papers that use courtesy titles.)

Words have power, particularly when you put them in a certain order. Saying, �President Bush� gives him a certain air of importance, while referring to the president of Iraq by his first name puts him on the level of your local thug — exactly how the U.S. government would like us to think of him.

Hamill, while not using my example, has similar views. A former newspaperman himself and a self prescribed newspaper junky, Hamill is in a nice position to try and bring his critique to the general public. He�s since left the life and work of a journalist and wrote eight novels, so I�m hoping some people that may pick up his latest Oprah bestseller might come across this and decide to check it out. I don�t count on it, though.

Hamill�s arguments aren�t earth shattering - in fact, it�s all been said before. From the critique that the press is too infatuated with celebrity journalism to the fact that media conglomeration has put the rich in the top positions which then distances the paper from its centralist function, there is nothing that people like Chomsky or Bagdikian haven�t noted.

But Hamill, having served in the journalistic trenches, knows the importance of brevity and more important, the necessity of lively writing. This is something I could give to the Average Schmoe and be reasonably sure that they would finish it - and perhaps learn something.


Rating: Worth new, and cheap to boot!

previous - next - random review