We the people ignore issues of importance at our own peril

“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.”

— Abraham Lincoln

When my mother was alive, she used to point out to me that England, in some respects, had a superior form of democracy than America; citing police who only carried nightsticks, not firearms; the government-supported free broadcasting station; elections not dependent upon raising huge sums of money; and, lastly, the British habit of automatically forming an orderly queue.

The fact that she grew up in England and was likely to remember some of it through rose-colored glasses may have prejudiced her viewpoint, but she would have been aghast (as I was) when details emerged about the closing of News of the World, Britain’s most-read Sunday newspaper. Investigations on both sides of the pond have been launched into the blatant flaunting of the law by Rupert Murdoch’s staff and the degree of power over the police and top politicians which Murdoch, himself, wields.

One can only hope that this expose will lessen his power to make or break key figures in government.

Of course, he still owns the widely read Sun tabloid, which likely will now publish on Sundays, replacing the closed News of the World. Here in America, he owns the Wall Street Journal and the New York Post.

While our press, so far, has not stooped to the gossipy, vindictive level which seems to be the British norm, the ever-increasing appetite for news of celebrities and pseudo-celebs is fed by magazines, gossip sheets, Twitter and Web sites devoted to rumor, rancor and ridicule.

Time Inc.’s most widely read magazine is not its flagship news magazine, but People, which is mostly filled with news and gossip of movie stars and celebrities.

Since news can be disseminated at lightning speed, as it is now, we tend to absorb it in sound bites; there is often too much coming at us to be able to deeply consider any one issue. I was surprised at the consuming interest in, as well as the almost violent reaction to, the verdict, in the recent Casey Anthony trial.

While Anthony turned out to be a disgusting person and pathological liar who was probably responsible for her daughter’s death, I wondered why so many followed the trial so closely and obsessed over the death of one small girl, but never became informed or upset about the millions of children slain in Darfur or, for that matter, how cuts in health care clinics here in America will affect many children.

As many leading newspapers have folded (and with them the demise of investigative reporters and crusading editors), as our television news has become less analytical and more sensational, as news stations like Fox (another Murdoch property) hire people in politics as newscasters and consultants, we are very much in danger of repeating Britain’s mistake in our own country.

This could serve as a wake up call for America. We need to support noncommercial television, insist upon accountability from all news media, full disclosure of income sources for candidates and their spouses, as well as for judges and members of the Supreme Court, and limits on corporate contributions to political parties and candidates.

The health and vigor of our democracy is dependent upon the trustworthiness and impartiality of our news sources, and in our paying attention to issues of importance rather than seeking pleasure placebos in slick gossip or flaming rhetoric.

- Article by Jean Cherni, founder of the retirement advisory service, Senior Living Solutions. Contact her at jeancherni@sbcglobal.net or 15 The Ponds at Hotchkiss Grove, Branford 06405.

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