Down to the wire : confronting climate collapse / David - Index of
Down to the wire : confronting climate collapse / David - Index of
Down to the wire : confronting climate collapse / David - Index of
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late-night thoughts about democracy S 61<br />
<strong>the</strong> people and crowds can make bad decisions, including ones that<br />
would paradoxically destroy democracy. Foolish people, in o<strong>the</strong>r<br />
words, can wreck even <strong>the</strong> best possible political system, while<br />
people with more foresight and public spirit can make a lesser<br />
system work well. There is no simple remedy for public apathy,<br />
carelessness, ignorance, or meanness, but <strong>the</strong>re is a steep price <strong>to</strong><br />
be paid if such qualities become <strong>the</strong> national character. As Thomas<br />
Jefferson put it, “If a nation expects <strong>to</strong> be ignorant and free, in a<br />
state <strong>of</strong> civilization, it expects what never was and never will be.”<br />
The founders, accordingly, placed <strong>the</strong>ir bets on an informed public,<br />
hoping “<strong>to</strong> inform <strong>the</strong>ir discretion by education,” as Jefferson put<br />
it. Freedom <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> press, accordingly, was particularly important<br />
for <strong>the</strong> authors <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> Constitution. Without accurate information<br />
or <strong>the</strong> means <strong>to</strong> acquire it, in James Madison’s words, political<br />
life would degenerate in<strong>to</strong> “a farce or a tragedy, or perhaps both.”<br />
Whe<strong>the</strong>r or not we have reached <strong>the</strong> level <strong>of</strong> farce or tragedy, it<br />
is clear that <strong>the</strong> press is no longer <strong>the</strong> alert watchman it once may<br />
have been and that it no longer plays <strong>the</strong> role <strong>the</strong> founders thought<br />
necessary for a healthy democracy. With a few exceptions, such<br />
as <strong>the</strong> McClatchy papers, intrepid reporters like Seymour Hersh,<br />
and columnists like Frank Rich, <strong>the</strong> late Molly Ivins, and Paul<br />
Krugman, <strong>the</strong> mainstream media and television news covered itself<br />
in ignominy in recent years, seldom challenging government statements<br />
regarding <strong>the</strong> decisions <strong>to</strong> launch <strong>the</strong> war on Iraq, violate<br />
<strong>the</strong> law by using <strong>to</strong>rture, suspend <strong>the</strong> right <strong>of</strong> habeas corpus, and<br />
illegally spy on its own citizens. 8<br />
Part <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> reason for <strong>the</strong> poor performance <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> American<br />
press can be found in <strong>the</strong> increasing centralization <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> media.<br />
In <strong>the</strong> fi rst edition <strong>of</strong> Media Monopoly in 1983, Ben Bagdikian<br />
lamented that we were down <strong>to</strong> 50 major media outlets. When<br />
he wrote <strong>the</strong> updated version in 2005, <strong>the</strong> number had dropped<br />
<strong>to</strong> fi ve, one <strong>of</strong> which is Fox News. Serious news and investigative<br />
reporting have been sacrifi ced in <strong>the</strong> competition for market<br />
share in an increasingly centralized market. When <strong>the</strong> Millennium