• About
  • Archive
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact
Dana Blankenhorn
  • Home
  • About Dana
  • Posts
  • Contact Dana
  • Archive
  • A-clue.com
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • About Dana
  • Posts
  • Contact Dana
  • Archive
  • A-clue.com
No Result
View All Result
Dana Blankenhorn
No Result
View All Result
Home censorship

The Circus Comes to Town

by Dana Blankenhorn
April 11, 2007
in censorship, Current Affairs, ethics, Internet, journalism, politics, Television, terrorism, The 1967 Game, war, Web/Tech, Weblogs
2
0
SHARES
2
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Anna_nicole_smith_dannielynn
A raging gunbattle erupted in central Baghdad yesterday, wounding 16 GIs. A human bomb blew up 16 police recruits. Another 52 were found dead along the roadsides. The President and Congress are fighting over war funding. Polls say Iraq is the most pressing concern for Americans today.

So I turned on the news today oh boy. And what did I see? Don Imus. Anna Nicole Smith’s baby. The Duke sex case.

Anyone notice the disconnect? Serious things are happening — mortgage problems, massive layoffs, spreading violence, yet all the TV news shows us are circuses, distractions, phony controversies.

What gives?

40 years ago we saw the war in Vietnam on our TV screens every
night. We saw what was happening in our world, what was important in
our world. We saw the riots, we heard the music.

Now there is this strange disconnect. It’s as though the TV medium is
afraid to engage us, afraid to challenge us, afraid to shake us from
complacency.

This is the way media act in countries under occupation. This is the
way the Soviet media acted under communism, the way most Arab and
African media functions today. This does not serve democracy, either as
a cause or as a system of government.

The only good news is that this is not all the media.

We have this
medium, this vast, worldwide medium. Where you can find the news, about
the true depth of the pet food scandal, about the perversion of Justice, about voter suppression,
about global warming and all the rest of it.

And with this medium you
can take action. This is not a passive medium, it’s an intimate medium. You can use this medium to respond, you can use it to argue, you can put your money
where your mouth is and find like-minded folks with which to put your
ideas into action.

What the circus on our screen proves is that the TV screen is
obsolete. It is no longer a mirror to reality, but a fun house mirror.

Reality we must find ourselves. And we are finding it. Thanks to this medium, the Internet.

Tags: ABCAnna Nicole SmithCNNImusInternetInternet mediumNBCnews coverageTVTV news
Previous Post

Destroying Net Neutrality, Piece by Piece

Next Post

The Duke of Oil – Chapter 4

Dana Blankenhorn

Dana Blankenhorn

Dana Blankenhorn began his career as a financial journalist in 1978, began covering technology in 1982, and the Internet in 1985. He started one of the first Internet daily newsletters, the Interactive Age Daily, in 1994. He recently retired from InvestorPlace and lives in Atlanta, GA, preparing for his next great adventure. He's a graduate of Rice University (1977) and Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism (MSJ 1978). He's a native of Massapequa, NY.

Next Post

The Duke of Oil - Chapter 4

Comments 2

  1. Cavalor Epthith, Esquire says:
    18 years ago

    One reason why I have CNN (In the hopes of catching a glimpse of the elusive Ralitsa Vassileva) on in the background and get most of my retention of news from the Internet.
    Keep up the good work!

    Reply
  2. Cavalor Epthith, Esquire says:
    18 years ago

    One reason why I have CNN (In the hopes of catching a glimpse of the elusive Ralitsa Vassileva) on in the background and get most of my retention of news from the Internet.
    Keep up the good work!

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent Post

The E-Transport Minority

Twilight of the Bike-y Bike

May 21, 2025
The Ultimate Scam

The Ultimate Scam

May 20, 2025
Game Changer

Game Changer

May 19, 2025
My AirBnB Trip

My AirBnB Trip

May 18, 2025
Subscribe to our mailing list to receives daily updates direct to your inbox!


Archives

Categories

Recent Comments

  • Dana Blankenhorn on The Death of Video
  • danablank on The Problem of the Moment (Is Not the Problem of the Moment)
  • cipit88 on The Problem of the Moment (Is Not the Problem of the Moment)
  • danablank on What I Learned on my European Vacation
  • danablank on Boomer Roomers

I'm Dana Blankenhorn. I have covered the Internet as a reporter since 1983. I've been a professional business reporter since 1978, and a writer all my life.

  • Italian Trulli

Browse by Category

Newsletter


Powered by FeedBlitz
  • About
  • Archive
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

© 2023 Dana Blankenhorn - All Rights Reserved

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • About Dana
  • Posts
  • Contact Dana
  • Archive
  • A-clue.com

© 2023 Dana Blankenhorn - All Rights Reserved