The new journalism

I was in the newspaper business for 20 years. It was exciting and disappointing at the same time. I left journalism because of the greed and the stockholders. No longer was the story the important item, it was what the stockholders and the company president could make as a bonus. I saw many incredible writers cast aside for young "talent" that cost less.
Stories shrank, photos were enlarged and journalism became a six-inch brief. News holes got smaller and advertising took over the paper. The actual newspaper itself shrunk. It used to take two hands to hold the paper, but now, it's a two to three inches smaller. At least trees are being saved.
Last year I jumped ship and moved across the border to PR and advertising. What I have found is amazing. All my career, advertising and editorial never mixed. A line was drawn in the sand to prevent any sort of bias or favoritism.
Since my new position, I have spoken with magazines, television, radio, newspapers, who will not print a press release, unless there are dollars behind it.
I was completely astounded when a woman told me, no advertising, no calendar item.
A major metropolitan newspaper was willing to take $4,000 in advertising, and publish a special section, then changed their mind. They were going to forgo future dollars because they could not sell advertising space in the special section. They would not print a word about the client, unless they had more money from us, but could not produce their own revenue, a practice that had worked before. The four page section morphed down to a full-page "advetorial." An ad plus editorial supplied by the agency on behalf of the client.
What?
On television, the "old fashioned" reporting of the news is gone. Yes the CBS, NBC and ABC's still have their nightly news broadcasts. But the rest of the networks all have talking heads analyzing every thing that is said, worn and should be according to them. Election 2008 time was amazing to me. Everyone had an opinion. You had to sift through the gibberish to figure out what was true and what was not opinion.
MSNBC was astonishing. The Obama-mania was incredible. Stars were born such as Rachel Madow, replacing the outlandish and over used Keith Oberman. What the? More left wing worshiping.
There is also the O'Reilley factor. Do people know he is just a character? A man stirring up whatever he can, to get ratings?
And Hannity, have you ever seen a program where everyone agrees with the host? Watch him.
I am tired of talking heads. I want to hear the facts and discuss it with my people, my family, my friends.
What about poor Kaylee, will she ever rest in peace? The mother should be shut away and the talk show hosts laid to rest.
I am left with 60 Minutes and Sunday Morning on CBS and NPR as my last hope. Real reporting, real investigating, real front line, real people and real stories.
By the way, what happened to the war in Iraq and Afghanistan? There is no more shock and awe, so we have 10-second sound bites that 7 Americans were killed in Afghanistan today.
Where are the scud studs, those imbedded, bring the horror and the glory to our TV screens each night?
Seven years of war and it is an afterthough in the public eye. Hundreds of thousands dead, and we are worried about buying our Wii's and making our mortgage payments. People are dying, for us.
Journalism needs to be what it was intended to be, reporting the truth, the facts, the real story.
No more paying for space or listening to men and women who claim to be experts.
Where are the Edward R. Murrows or Walter Kronkites of the world?
Remember, all you read or hear it filtered... Only the truth is the answer. But where do you find it?