Don't Change the Channel. Change the System.

DON'T CHANGE THE CHANNEL. CHANGE THE SYSTEM
[SOURCE: Huffington Post, AUTHOR: Josh Silver, Free Press]
[Commentary] Mainstream media -- especially television -- is like an alcoholic that keeps binging, repenting, swearing sobriety, and returning to the bottle. Problem is, it's the American public that's getting poisoned by their lethal stew of horse-race election analysis, celebrity gossip and soundbite coverage. We go to the voting booth -- a right that people fought and died for -- knowing very little about what the candidates actually stand for. And you can forget about any information on candidates like Dennis Kucinich and Ron Paul, whom the press has shut out of the debate -- literally. It is a lethal brew of profoundly broken electoral and media systems that must be fundamentally reformed -- and fast. For media, that means rolling back ownership consolidation, so that TV and radio stations and newspapers are owned by people who represent the broad diversity of America and live in the communities they serve. It means strengthening non-commercial media outlets like PBS, NPR, low power radio and community television channels. It means investing in universal, affordable Internet access and breaking the corporate bottleneck on distribution, so that any Web site can have the reach of a TV or radio network. It means creating a media that provides every American with a megaphone. It means reclaiming a truly free press.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/josh-silver/dont-change-the-channel_b_8220...

* The Beast Without a Brain: Why Horse Race Journalism Works for Journalists and Fails Us
[SOURCE: Jay Rosen]
[Commentary] Just so you know, "the media" has no mind. It cannot make decisions. Which means it does not "get behind" candidates. It does not decide to oppose your guy... or gal. Nor does it "buy" this line or "swallow" that one. It is a beast without a brain. Most of the time, it doesn't know what it's doing.
http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/012108F.shtml