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May 17, 2005
The power of print media
Just when everyone is talking about the death of print media comes the Newsweek incident that proves the power of print. For those of you not paying attention:
In its May 9 edition, the weekly newsmagazine cited an unnamed U.S. government official as saying an investigation of abuse allegations at the detention center found evidence that guards committed infractions in trying to get terror suspects to talk, including flushing a Koran down the toilet, Newsweek said.
Newsweek said Pentagon spokesman Larry DiRita told the magazine its report was wrong and the investigation turned up no credible evidence of Koran desecration. Newsweek reported that the government official cited in the original story "could no longer be sure" such findings were included in the results of the investigation by the U.S. Southern Command.
(from Bloomberg.com: Top Worldwide)
The story sparked riots in Islamic countries (even in countries where Newsweek is officially banned). And such is the power of the press that many in those countries now refuse to believe the retraction.
Muslims in Afghanistan and Pakistan were skeptical Monday about an apparent retraction by Newsweek magazine of a report that U.S. interrogators desecrated the Koran and said U.S. pressure was behind the climb-down.
The report in Newsweek's May 9 issue sparked protests across the Muslim world from Afghanistan, where 16 were killed and more than 100 injured, to Pakistan, India, Indonesia and Gaza.
Newsweek said Sunday the report might not be true.
"We will not be deceived by this," Islamic cleric Mullah Sadullah Abu Aman told Reuters in the northern Afghan province of Badakhshan, referring to the magazine's retraction.
(from Top News Article | Reuters.com)
My sense of the continued power of traditional media is underscored by a new study (see "Blogs haven't displaced media"):
Charting the discussion of issues during the 2004 presidential campaign, the study by the Pew Internet & American Life Project and consultants BuzzMetrics found political blogs -- online opinion and information sites -- played a similar, but not greater role, as did the mainstream media and the candidates' campaigns in creating "buzz."
The study dispels the notion that blogs are replacing traditional media as the public's primary source of information, said Michael Cornfield, a senior research consultant at Pew.
Clearly, the print media is alive and relevant -- judging by the stink it can still kick up.
Posted by Ken Jarboe at May 17, 2005 8:18 AM
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