Media Justice

In the next months or so the Passion for Justice blog will address the dominant economic issue that prominantly concern almost all of us. In some of my ministries where I engage with a diverse Catholic community the issue of the economy is almost always front and center. As I engage in these conversations I become aware of the tremendous power that the media excerts in shaping our views on economic, political and social issues. One general observation I have made is that if you are an avid watcher of Fox news:

• Your view will usually tend to a conservative approach 
• social problems are usually the fault of Democrats or Liberals
• Solutions will come from less government regulations, tax cuts and military projects (Republican ideals)

If you are an avid watcher of MSNBC on the other hand:

• Your views will usually tend to a liberal approach
• Social problems are usually the fault of Republicans or Conservatives
• Solutions will come from more government regulations, social programs, and diplomatic projects (Democratic ideals)

Overall I have longed held the belief that our American media is highly opinionated, very simple and hardly objective and thoughtful. This perspective is reinforced when people come from other western countries and are appalled by the low quality of our media (I have refrained from using some of the prominant adjectives that are used to make this point.) Nevertheless the media is an essential part of our lives. Catholic Social Teaching tells us that:

The Media must be used to build up and sustain the human community in its different sectors: economic, political, cultural, educational and religious. “The information provided by the media is at the service of the common good. Society has a right to information based on truth, freedom, justice and solidarity. - Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, #415

I personally rely on the media to provide social information from which I can apply theological information and social analysis for the Passionist community and ministries. Yet at present our American media lets us down and leaves us with what I call highly opinionated shock and awe which aims at stoking our own partisan belligerence.

In my opinion CNN and the networks still fulfill their function in that at least they provide the basic headlines and information. I take all their opinions and analysis with a grain of salt however. After all many of these media corporations are beholden to their profitable pursuits and money will almost always trump the truth. The following 2001 media ownership chart is helpful in providing us a perspective of the private media family and the ultimate interest that they serve. For me this is helpful tool to help me discriminate between business interest and the actual story.   

MediaChannel.org — Media Ownership 2001.

As for the media sources that I recommend. Ironically, in my pursuit for the best news source and analysis. I have found that the two main financial newspapers to be an excellent source in giving the reader not only good detailed information but also excellent and academic analysis, especially on the economy. They are:

• Wall Street Journal: which tends towards a domestic financial focus that leans slightly conservative
• Financial Times: which tends towards an international/european financial focus that leans slightly progressive (my personal favorite.)

And finally I also recommed National Public Radio. I personally find NPR to be a very good source of information and global analysis. NPR is a champion at promoting global solidarity unlike any other media. But my other reason to champion NPR is because the issue of public media is also a Catholic Social Issue:

In the world of the media the intrinsic difficulties of communications are often exacerbated by ideology, the desire for profit and political control, rivalry and conflicts between groups and other social evils…

“In all three areas – the message, the process and structural issues – one fundamental moral principle always applies: the human person and the human community are the end and measure of the use of the media. A second principle is complementary to the first: the good of human beings cannot be attained independently of the common good of the community to which they belong.” It is necessary that citizens participate in the decision-making process concerning media policies. This participation, which is to be public, has to be genuinely representative and not skewed in favor of special interest groups when the media are a money-making venture. – Compendium of the Catholic Social Doctrine of the Church, #416