< Previous page

That said, some of the questions about the fairness of the paper's coverage are understandable. Last week, Connecticut Sen. Joseph Lieberman returned from his fourth trip to Iraq to report, in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece, "real progress there." That assessment by the Democrats' former vice presidential candidate somehow did not find its way into many newspapers, including The News & Observer, and conservative readers questioned whether we were hiding that message. Kennedy, The N&O's Nation & World editor, said the paper's wire services did not provide a story. That's a problem.

The recent ramping-up of the Iraq news coverage, of course, is news-driven. Democrats have gotten more aggressive in criticism of the Iraq policy, and the Bush administration has gone on the offensive in defending its conduct of the war. High points were reached with the call for troop withdrawal by Pennsylvania congressman John Murtha on Nov. 17 and President Bush's victory strategy speech last week. The newspapers were simply reporting the news.

But many readers indicated in their surveys last week that they expected more in-depth coverage, which newspapers are better equipped to do than television or radio. An example is a front-page piece that ran last Sunday, from The N&O's Washington Bureau, that examined the reasons -- beyond weapons of mass destruction -- that led us into the Iraq War. "What coverage there is has been good, but I would like to see more depth and breadth to the Iraq war story," wrote Sally Godfrey of Cary. "There are so many 'talking points' -- p.r. statements, spin, that get reported as news -- hardly enough for a true picture to make well-informed decisions. More hard facts about why we went to war are needed."

That reminded me of comments about Iraq war coverage by Michael Getler, who until recently held the position similar to mine at The Washington Post. He said in his final column that the greatest failing of the press during his time was not scrutinizing the rationale for getting into the war. "As I look back at the past five years in this job, that is by far the single most important and most disappointing performance by the press, including The Post," Getler wrote.

Along those lines another reader, Michael Silverstein of Cary, offered advice that could stand for any kind of newspaper coverage, not just of Iraq: "Gather the facts, present them clearly and fairly, provide good analysis and don't be cowed. Given the many alternative sources for information, if mainstream media blows it again, they may never be given another chance."

< Previous page