Military Optimism Is Problem for Media

Rare for a member of the mainstream media, Howard Kurtz comes precipice-close to admitting that elite journalism has nothing to do with reporting, rather it is almost exclusively opinion in disguise. Kurtz does this by indicating that military morale is a problem for embedded reporters.

One drawback of reporting in the bosom of the U.S. military is an abundance of military optimism, and perhaps spin, from those who are providing protection.

Kurtz even suggests that optimism on the part of American service members is political spin. This strongly hints that an umbrella of mendacity exists throughout the military. To me, that's a slap.

In Kurtz's article, which discusses Brian Williams' reporting from Iraq, it's clear to me that the energy, confidence and pride of the American military are a "drawback" because they are contrary to desired notions and are nagging realities which make "reporting" more difficult. This is troubling.

If a reporter goes to Iraq, for crying out loud, report! Report the good, the bad, the ugly and if mile-high military optimism is found, by all means, report it. In other words, report the facts. Good reporters should care not what the facts are. Now when a reporter decides to write commentary, fine. Identify it as an editorial or opinion piece and go at it.

Unfortunately, with the elite media, that's not how things appear to be done. According to Howard Kurtz, a simple fact complicates the reporting of circumstances in Iraq.

In reality, the arrogant elite in the media appear to have each opinion -- er, report -- drafted prior to arriving at a news scene and anything found that doesn't jive with the desired opinion -- er, report -- is considered a "drawback." The only reason to go to the scene is to selectively collect adjectives, nouns and anecdotes to color and give credence to the desired opinion -- er, report.

When Brian Williams returns from Iraq, I suspect that military morale may be mentioned but not highlighted. As an American who wants victory, I think knowledge of the optimism expressed by the U.S. military is important and should be emphasized in any news report.

Analogously, fans of football know the paramount importance of their team being in high spirits and having a winning attitude. Handicappers consider team spirit a factor in determining probably of winning. And, sports reporters dwell on team spirit endlessly.

The fact that Howard Kurtz believes "abundant optimism" is a drawback indicates to me that he and Brian Williams are rooting for the other team. If reporting is hindered because Americans are upbeat, it's logical to deduce that reporting would be stellar if Americans were dismally depressed.

In any event, reporters should be reporting what is found, not what they want to find.