Dear Sen. Lee,
I recently read an article in The Salt Lake Tribune about your critique of KSL.com for their usage of “left-winged” articles from The Associated Press.
As a journalism professor, former journalist and a member of your faith, I am very disappointed in your response and outrage toward KSL.com. Journalists do their best to be objective by balancing their own personal biases and those of the organization. Their job is difficult as they maneuver through their task of informing and translating the facts for the general public. KSL has done a fantastic job of being neutral when their owner, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, is conservative by nature and otherwise often inserts itself in politics and the public eye in Utah.
Your outrage shows how tribalistic our world has become as we shift further away from having the ability to perceive what is neutral. In addition to my past work as a journalist and my present work as a journalism professor, I read many news articles from different outlets daily. I am very aware of where my news comes from and the leanings that may or may not be professed by the news organizations. That being said, I would disagree that the AP is “left-leaning,” as they tend to stick to the facts and leave out the editorializing and malicious words that you argue in the two articles cited. I invite you to show evidence of malicious and editorialized words used in an AP story published by KSL.com, as I am having a hard time seeing where you are coming from.
By discrediting the news, especially the local news, you are weakening the very foundation of our society. The news has always played a crucial role as government watchdog to inform the average citizen about the acts of our elected officials. As an elected official, you are playing with fire here.
Please reconsider your actions. Thank you.
Jamie Bowen, Clarksville, Tenn.
from The Salt Lake Tribune https://ift.tt/3326Xbt
September 26, 2020 at 09:00AM
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