Amy Goodman: Iraq War Reporting Ended Celebrity Journalism

Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman argues that the audience for "celebrity journalism" in America has been declining since since the U.S. government failed to find WMDs in Iraq. "I think people are sick and tired of being fed either these fluff stories, or simply lies," says Goodman.

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Amy Goodman has exposed human-rights violations in East Timor and Nigeria, has been arrested covering the Republican National Convention and was the first person to interview exiled Haitian President Aristide.

"The role of reporters," she says, "is to go to where the silence is and say something." Known for her dedication to untold stories and issues that are chronically overlooked, Goodman has made a mark as an investigative journalist who looks beyond mainstream media news. Now it's your chance meet the icon and ask her what the news should really be talking about. - Commonwealth Club of California

Amy Goodman is the host and executive producer of Democracy Now!. She is co-author of the national best-seller The Exception to the Rulers: Exposing Oily Politicians, War Profiteers, and the Media that Love Them, written with her brother David Goodman.

The book was chosen by independent bookstores as the #1 political title of the 2004 election season. The book was also chosen as one of the top 50 nonfiction books of 2004 by the editors of Publishers Weekly.

Democracy Now! is a national, daily, independent, award-winning news program airing on over 300 stations in North America. Pioneering the largest public media collaboration in the U.S., Democracy Now! is broadcast on Pacifica, community, and National Public Radio stations, public access cable television stations, satellite television (on Free Speech TV, channel 9415 of the DISH Network), shortwave radio and the internet.

[steveneeply]

She's exactly right. I saw it happen. Even PBS fell in line. It was all very disturbing.

[Hopeful]

The lesson is multi-faceted; access begets power, money corrupts, etc, etc. But the central theme should be a true examination of the weaknesses of the medium. The video format DEMANDS the 10 second sound bite, the over-simplification, and the entertainment focus of TV 'journalism'

You can't examine even the simplest of issues properly in an hour long documentary much less a 2 minute segment. It tricks its viewers into thinking they are informed when they are not

[eirefrance]

You know, my original thought was "Bullshit, people don't want to hear true voices, they want news that feeds their preconceived notions." But she makes a good point about the growth of her organization and other true indy media in the last decade, Go Amy, maybe there is hope for humanity.

[ka]

Are there any independent, factual news sites out there?

[THESocialJusticeWarrior]

I wish people wanted facts and not fluff, but when I look at the number of hits a kitten video gets I think otherwise.

[arashnikoo]

@ndyt when people are looking at the kitten they are looking at a fact! that kitten isn't acting. I hope people care about each other more than how much they care about celebrities.

[SouthDFWrep]

The media has done such a good job dividing this country into seperate camps that some people listen encamped. It is so ingrained in some individuals that the word is not the word, unless the word comes their person... the person they feel can only speak for their camp.

[khi]

its not easy to find the true facts - but then its good to have different reports from more than one side at least (as well as reading different newspapers) - a pity one*s time is limited ...

[blackiron]

@HayteStreet It's called class power.

[adirmugrabi]

@AdamEtheredge i would have watched if my pc wasn't so suckish

[adirmugrabi]

lol i just heard her say: "i don't think" then the vid got stuck
so i said to her: true, you don't think