Most journalists would rather uncover something than cover it. Secret information takes on importance it may not deserve, simply because it has been secret. News often is colored by the framework established by a leaker whose personal agenda remains hidden.
The late I.F. Stone was admired for his exclusives, but few journalists today copy his methods. He found them by poring over government documents that were available to the public. "The White House press corps knows more than I do," he once remarked. "The problem is, most of it isn't true."
Journalists are constantly presented with story opportunities that they cannot use because they don't have a "peg." Positive, openly available news is very hard to peg in today's news culture. As they search for outrages to unveil, both the contemporary press and the radio talk show commentators often overlook much of what is actually going on in American politics today.
Genuine success stories may be harder to find than problems, but efforts to
solve problems are evident everywhere. If talk radio is the "stealth
medium,"
"America has a secret political life," observes David Mathews, President of the
Kettering Foundation, which has helped to nurture civic involvement around the
country. His foundation and others like the National Civic League, Amitai
Etzioni's Communitarian Network, the Civic Forum, the Ford Foundation's
Innovations project, and The Rockefeller Foundation's The Common Enterprise
initiative, offer numerous "success stories" that describe citizens working
together to solve community problems, with some evidence of success. But most
Americans, who take their view of American political life from downbeat
national news and cynical campaign ads, do not see enough of these stories.
They often are not aware that someone out there is making a difference. Even
more remote is the possibility that they, too, might find a way to engage
positively in finding resolutions to such problems as crime, unwed parenthood,
pollution, welfare abuse, and corruption.
Some journalists, recognizing the corrosive effects of negativity on their
communities--and their own relationships with their customers--have actively
redirected their coverage. "ABC News" began a trend with the networks when it
initiated a nightly "American Agenda" feature that often includes problem
solvers and success stories; the Akron Beacon Journal won a Pulitzer
Prize in 1994 for covering race in a way that engaged local citizens; and
Newsweek devoted a special issue, May 29, 1995, to "Everyday
Heroes."