The edited tape of Sheryl Sherrod's speech has raised the issue of racism again. Indeed, this needs to be raised, but there are other issues that this editing also brings to light. How much of the news presented by right-wing news media, print and broadcast, is an edited version? This occurs not just with racism, but with war, the economy, health care, foreign policy, etc. People are getting distortions of the facts all the time from the media. Part of this is the consequence of the push to be first; time isn't taken to get the whole story. Deadlines play a part. A big part is deliberate right-wing ideology at play.
It's bad enough when the media engages in this, but when this is also how government operates, our country is at risk. Important decisions are based upon partial or uncorroborated information. Even false information that is pushing a hidden agenda. Or information that reflects the ideology of those presenting it. Or getting a step ahead of the evening newscasts.
We knew this was the mode of operation of the Bush presidency, but there are indications of similar behavior in the Obama administration. While the president claims he wants to hear all sides of an issue , in practice this isn't happening. Where are the liberals among his advisors or heading up government departments? How much consideration is given to people expressing different views from the establishment? How much information is kept secret from the people to cover up failures of government? How many inaccurate statements are made to simply save face?
Trust in the media and trust in government has badly eroded in recent years. The Sherrod case is an example of why. Perhaps it will help more people to wake up.
