Remember
the "Afghanistan Effect."
Coined by the British 100 years ago, this expression means that the further
something is from people's lives, the more they are inclined to believe
what is written about it. It's a natural tendency, even among people skeptical
of what they read in the press.
Look beyond
the headlines. Water, for example, doesn't get a lot of play
in the press in stories about Israel and Palestine. Yet, Israel depends
on the West Bank for a large share of its water and on the Golan Heights
for part of it, too. It's not surprising that the Israelis have held on
to those areas and are reluctant to give up control, especially in times
of drought. Also, the demographics of the area are changing. Because of
higher Arab birthrates, the population of Jews in Israel is gradually
decreasing. Those are the kinds of things I consider when I try to analyze
the meaning of the news for our readers.
Don't get carried away by "herd" journalism. Once
a story is cast by the major media -- usually television -- as being a
story of good guys vs. bad guys, it's very hard to change readers' perceptions.
That was a serious problem when we were reporting in the Balkans. The
Serbs were "bad," and everybody else was a victim. As a result,
there was a lot that happened that was not reported, and more that was
not reported accurately.
Mitchell works for Investor's Business Daily
and is author of "The National Issue," a regular feature that
often requires interviewing diplomats such as Turkish ambassador Faruk
Logoglu (left). The UC alumnus says he had two ambitions as a youngster
-- to be a soldier and a writer -- and he has accomplished both. An ROTC
distinguished military graduate and Army veteran, he wrote two books in
the '90s about gender integration of the U.S. Armed Forces.
Link:
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