Narcissus and the Press

The 'sphere has done a good job of getting the press to take a hard look at what it calls "journalism" in the last couple of years. The pressure has come from both sides of the ideological spectrum.

But I'm afraid we've created a press corps of navel-gazers. Even the press is now intent on making the story more about themselves and their coverage of issues that the story itself. Ok, press corps, you screwed up by overlooking the DSM. We forgive you. Now get after it.

But instead the press wants to explain why a memo from Britain's top intelligence officer which accuses President Bush of lying to Congress and America is not news. Conason nails it:

How foolish and how sad that all these distinguished journalists prefer to transform this scandal into a debate about their own underachieving performance, rather than redeem mainstream journalism by advancing an important story that they should have pursued from the beginning. This is a moment when the mainstream press could again demonstrate to a skeptical public why we need journalists. Instead they are proving once more that their first priority is to cover their own behinds.

The MSM has become truly embarassing.