The Fair Reader: An Extra! Review of Press and Politics in the '90s

In just about every major news story of the '90s from the U.S. invasion of Panama to the 1994 midterm elections, the major media has misled, misinformed and manipulated its audience. That's the overriding message in this exhaustive and occasionally overwhelming collection of articles culled from EXTRA!, the official publication of the New York-based Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR). Whether the deception occurs because of laziness (reporters condemning the philosophies of assistant attorney general nominee Lani Guinier without bothering to read them) or government manipulation (during the Gulf War, the Pentagon curried favor by flying in U.S. reporters to cover ""hometown troops""), it's chilling to be presented with evidence that the news outlets on whom most Americans rely are doing such a shoddy job. A few earn praise, but overall the tone is one of pedantic disapproval. That makes sense--FAIR is a media watchdog. But in addition to the relentless scolding, the editors might have answered some of the questions that they raise. Specifically: Why haven't more people attacked this trend? How can journalistic accountability be fostered? Equally troublesome is that many of the FAIR writers rely as much on statistics as the journalists they criticize. How is the reader to know whose numbers are valid? That said, this is a valuable collection, if for no other reason than it reminds readers to question everything. (Apr.)