Is the mainstream media anti-Palin?

After weeks of being sequestered from reporters, Republican VP nominee Gov. Sarah Palin was unleashed to ABC's Charlie Gibson and most recently CBS's Katie Couric. Both asked about U.S. relations with Russia, Iran and Israel, abortion and the Bush Administration's handling of the war in Iraq. Neither Gibson nor Couric let up.



Some political strategists argue that the McCain camp's strategy of keeping Palin away from reporters for so long suggested that they don't have much confidence in her abilities, thus affecting her performance during the Couric interview in particular. Others suggest that the media has and will continue to scrutinize and over analyze everything Sarah Palin says.

Is the media against Palin or just irritated because their requests for interviews have mostly been turned down? CNN's Campbell Brown recently lashed out at the McCain camp urging them to 'set Palin free', stop the 'sexism' in their campaign, and let her answer unscripted questions from reporters.



I don't think the McCain campaign's strict limits on interviews had much to do with her gender than I do on her knowledge on economic and foreign policy issues.

Still, I think that keeping Palin locked away for so long was a mistake on the part of the McCain campaign. Regular interviews with selected reporters and media outlets would have allowed Palin to become more and more comfortable unscripted. Moreover, Palin's first interviews probably should not have been with the sharpest and most recognizable people in the news industry. I guess the McCain camp figured that veteran journalists like Couric and Gibson wouldn't be as...aggressive and biased as other mainstream journalists. In any case, Palin's interview with Couric has received harsh criticism from both Democratic and Republican strategist and maybe more disturbing, from journalists.



Ok, the interviews were not by many accounts...stellar. Obviously foreign policy isn't Palin's strongest area and it's also clear that she isn't completely informed on all issues facing this country. Palin was probably just as surprised when McCain asked her to be his running mate as many Americans were. However, as journalists, we should allow Americans to decide how well or poorly she did.

At the same time, she is running for the Vice Presidency of the United States, and journalists do have an obligation to ask the tough questions and get answers for the American public.

I just hope that the media remembers to ask Palin questions not to quiz or test her, but to better understand her principles and stances on key issues.

Fox: Unfair and Unbalanced

Seeking Truth and reporting it is at the core of the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics. Along the way, the news industry has sometimes lost sight of this charge. Most recently Fox News has lead the pack for "unbalanced" and "unfair" news.

During this current presidential campaign, Fox News has worked overtime to portray Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barak Obama as a mysterious, strange outsider too young and incompetent to be Commander in Chief and determined to impart his "Muslim" views on the American people.



The network has a history of racism and catering to conservative Americans. According to The Hill newspaper, a Washington D.C. newspaper which focuses on political and Capital Hill news, 88 percent of Fox viewers voted Republican in 2004 (http://thehill.com/mark-mellman/hounding-fox-news-coverage-2007-03-20.html.)

Now this is not to say that all Fox News reporters, commentators, corespondents, analysts or viewers are racist. Many may find the network more informative or even entertaining, but the interviewing styles, selection of guests and analysts show something different. Fox News is more committed to satisfying its mostly conservative audience than reporting both sides of an argument equally. This is especially evident with the current elections.

I have been glued to new stations for the past five to six months in particular because of the elections. Although CNN is my main source, I watch Fox just to compare reporting styles and techniques. For me, it clear but again it's all personal preference.

The network has even gone so far as to attack Michelle Obama, even though Sen. Obama has firmly held that the spouses, children and families of presidential candidates are off limits according to The Huffington Post ( http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/06/18/barack-obama-lay-off-my-f_n_107912.html).




American news in general has become more about sales and viewership than real journalism. Report the facts and let the readers and viewers decide. Reporting the facts for broadcast in particular means asking the tough questions, inviting guests with contrasting view points, giving those guests a chance to speak (Mr. O'Reily) and always remaining as a mediator and journalist, neutral no matter what.

Slumping Newspaper Sales Hit Home

The partnership between the University of Central Florida's student readership program and the Orlando newspaper, the Orlando Sentinel has come to end...for now.

Our university's Student Government Association refused to continue business after the Sentinel increased the prices of the paper by 23 cents. SGA president Logan Berkowits said that he "wouldn't allow students to be forced to pay extra."

This is a good example of the types of things newspapers across the nation are dealing with. In a world of buyouts, job cuts and shut-downs, it's uncertain what the history of newspapers will be. Advertising sales are just not where they used to be, forcing newspapers to make tough decisions about circulation, which in turn affects overall readership of newspapers.

So it's understandable why the Sentinel would look to generate a little more revenue from the SGA partnership, but on the other hand students lose. We lose if we increase the prices of the Sentinel on campus, and we lose if don't have the papers on campus. Journalism, business and political science students use the Sentinel for class assignments.

Although newspapers may not completely go away, the industry has and will continue to change drastically. The Internet has played a key role in these changes, serving as a faster and possibly more comprehensive alternative to gather information.

Although the Sentinel, like other newspapers, is going through changes, it shouldn't neglect the students that so actively support it. Advanced reporting student at UCF write articles and contribute to newspaper through U-News, a section of the Sentinel written and edited by students. The relationship with UCF and the Sentinel is ongoing through jobs and internships.

Students can easily pay the 75 cents for the Sentinel on regular newsstands, but going through the 'extra trouble' may discourage some students to simply not bother if they don't have to.

Either way, both the Sentinel and SGA say they hope to come to an agreement. Sentinel spokesperson Lisa Jacobsen said: "They've been in discussion for some time now, and we definitely hope to bring it back if we can come to an agreement on the price."