In praise of the Christian Science Monitor

[pasadenaboy]

I just want to drop a line about what a good newspaper the christian science monitor is, particulaly concerning international affairs.

Their in depth reporting puts all other newspapers (including the washington post and new york times) to shame, IMHO.

Does anyone else like the CSM?

[Ein]

1. Love it.

If any new source could call itself Fair and Balanced, CSM would be it.

edit: Do you subscribe? Thier webpage doesn't update too often for me, for some reason.

[pruner]

2. I do

and I'm not even a Christian Scientist.

[roughsatori]

3. A great newspaper

I love the international coverage and secretly read the articles that come from the Christian Science perspective. Once when I was having a very hard time in life and was BROKE, a women who worked at the school I attended gave me 2 years of a daily subscription--that paper was one of the only things I looked forward to everyday.

[5thGenDemocrat]

4. Former journalist here

CSM has always had a reputation for being one of the fairest and most balanced papers in the world.
It has always supported peace, except for WWII. It was one of the first papers to warn the world about Hitler (in the course of an interview with the man in 1923!). It was the first paper to report on the new invention called "television" and told the world of Hitler's plans to invade Russia two months before the invasion occurred.
It is exceptionally well edited, always trying to put the news into perspective and to analyze the day's events. It refrains from sensationalism.
As it is a Christian Science paper, it refrains from using the words "death," "dying" or "dead" in relation to people and does not accept paid obituaries (there is a story, possibly apocryphal, of the CSM reporting on "passed on" mules littering a battlefield in WWI). For the same reason, it doesn't accept drug or alcohol advertisements, nor does it show pictures of people smoking or drinking.
That said, it is probably the finest paper in the United States and one of the top ten in the world.
John
Who is sure the other ink-stained wretches here agree with me.

[trof]

12. Right on.

One of my journalism professors way back in 1960 said "If you could only read one newspaper...".
Their reputation hasn't diminished in 4 decades.
on edit-I read the online edition every morning.

[Clete]

5. Yes, although I haven't read in years.

I'm too far out in the boonies to run down to the newstand.

[DieboldMustDie]

6. Their web site is at:

http://www.csmonitor.com/

[Clete]

8. Thank you.

Dumb me. I didn't even think of it.
Edited to say I bookmarked it.:-)

[Woodstock]

7. Yes

I like it. (I stopped reading the Post. Too conservative.)

The BBC and The Guardian are good for international news, too.

BBC World News is also recommended (on some PBS and BBC America.)

[Cocoa]

9. I remember reading some good stories there during the war

One memorable one was interviews with soldiers that were absolutely freaked out by all the suicidal Iraqi soldiers that just kept coming at them, that they had to kill.

[evworldeditor]

10. CSM and DU.... the other kind

The CSM also has been the leader in covering the depleted uranium issue in Iraq. Their reporter -- I forget his name -- has taken Geiger Counter readings all over Iraq and especially in Baghdad and found in some areas levels 1,900 times higher than normal background level.

Few other papers or media have been willing to speak out on this like the CSM.

[BigMcLargehuge]

11. The only paper I've had a regular subscriptio to in ten years

Love their international coverage. It's as even handed as it gets especially with complex and flamable topics like Israel/Palestine and the Balkans. Every newspaper could learn about what journalism means by reading them once a day.

[CWebster]

13. Sometimes

but too often they tow the line.

[tinnypriv]

14. Yeah

Once one of their editorials flat out stated that Chavez was "more dictator than democrat", or words to that effect.

In general, I think it is a good paper. Certainly one of the best.