ENG 95 Media Response

There has been a lot of coverage in many of the media outlets concerning the proposed bailout of Wall Street. For an analysis, I looked at an article on DemoncracyNow.org (which admittedly is known as having a "liberal" perspective). To access the article click here: http://www.democracynow.org/2008/9/24/bush_admin_faces_congressional_skeptics_on

This article follows the transcript of the 9/24/08 Democracy Now broadcast. Amy Goodman acts as the anchor and in this segment she introduces the varying opinions on the bailout as expressed by the senators who will be voting on the measure. One of the criticisms of the proposal is that it is undetailed and lacks oversight. Henry Paulson addresses this concern by stating that the measure was not intended to be all-encompassing, but a first draft to get the conversation in motion. Ben Bernanke also supports the bailout by stating that without it, the economy will dive into a recession. Sen. Chris Dodd criticizes the plan by stating that the $700 billion bailout will only aid those who actually created the Wall Street mess, not the average taxpayers who severely need aid now. Sen. Richard Shelby even questions why it is the government's responsibility to bailout the Wall Street "fat cats." Sen. Jim Bunning agrees by calling the bailout an act of socialism, as opposed to the free market that guides our democracy. Lastly, Sen. Sherrod Brown is concerned that those that are inflicting economic pain on the American public will continue to do so if they are bailed out of the current crisis.

This segment does attempt to bring balanced reporting on this issue. Goodman broadcasts speech excerpts from those who both oppose and support the bailout. Additionally, both sides are given approximately equal amounts of "air time." It is also commendable that the article allows for the key players to "speak for themselves." Goodman does not summarize their statements, which could allow for her own bias to creep in. Instead, she shows their actual words, unedited.
However, there are some issues with this news article also. First, Goodman does not provide enough background here into the $700 billion bailout proposal itself. The audience does not receive details on the actual proposal, so it can only use the key players' words to form an opinion. What are the details of the plan? Why is the bailout out such a high dollar amount? How is the crisis it aims to solve related to the recent governmental bailouts of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac? Secondly, Goodman closes the article/segment by stating that Ohio Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown is "reminding Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke of the price Main Street is paying for both Wall Street’s excesses and now the bailout." Her use of the word "reminding" implies that Brown is calling their attention to a fact, not just a viewpoint. "Excesses" also has a negative connotation in that it implies that the money spent (and lost) was due to greed and in their control. In these key ways, the article shows its perspective--that the bailout is a bad idea.