Journalism used to fight for the working man, now its a bastion of trust fund kids

[MelissaB]

Sunday, Mar 19, 2017 07:29 AM EDT

WATCH: Journalism used to fight for the working man, now it’s a bastion of “trust fund kids”

Investigative reporter David Cay Johnston joins Salon's Carrie Sheffield to discuss the changing journalism culture

David Cay Johnston, investigative reporter, Pulitzer Prize winner and longtime chronicler of Donald Trump — including releasing two pages of Trump’s taxes this week to MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow — said he believes there has been an ongoing crusade against responsible journalism dating back to the era of Richard Nixon.

“I think what happened here is there has been a 40 year campaign against honest journalism,” Johnston said in a recent Salon Talk, “and so many people believe news organizations that just make stuff up. I think more important than the bias, there’s been a tendency in the news to focus very much on, ‘What’s going on with the Internet? What’s going on with these exciting new gizmos?’ As opposed to, ‘What’s happening to people who work in factories in Iowa and Michigan and their concerns?’”

Johnston said rather than be concerned about conservative versus liberal bias in the media, he believes the industry’s problems stemm from class divisions such as rich people bias. Salon asked Johnston if he thought the evolution of journalism created such biases, to some degree, in light of Watergate acting almost as a turning point where journalism became more of a profession. Historically, journalism had been sort of a blue collar, working man or woman’s occupation.

“What I saw happen over the 50 years of my career was more and more people coming into journalism who had grown up in very comfortable circumstances,” Johnston said, adding that he met more and more journalists who came from money or at least white collar families.

More: http://www.salon.com/2017/03/19/journalism-used-to-fight-for-the-working-man-now-its-a-bastion-of-trust-fund-kids/

Video at link as well

[jrthin]

1. This is exactly what

I have been saying for years. Many journalists today reflect and fight for the rich white, upper class. This explains which questions are asked and how they are asked. And when there are the few faces of color that are hired, many of them are republicans, i.e Lester Holt.

[sharedvalues]

2. Sexy jobs (broadcast) select for looks, not brains

Once in a while you get a smart broadcast journalist, but it's not the main job qualification- what's important is that you look good. This is why print and Internet journalism is so important - brains matter most.

The big problem America faces is that broadcast journalism has the biggest influence over most of the country, as most are not deeply engaged in politics.

[DonCoquixote]

3. one wanring about sheffield

She has a major conservative and a passionate defender of Paul Ryan.

http://bold.global/carrie-sheffield/2016/11/16/paul-ryan-kept-speakership-thats-win-poverty/

I know the classical logic tells us not to attack the source, but when there is outright lying going on, it does not hurt to be wary of wolves in sheep's clothing.