Telling the truth at a moment of truth: US news media and the invasion and occupation of Iraq

Abstract

The notion of a free press, of an institution that monitors those in power and those who wish to be in power, that ferrets out truth from lies, that draws public attention to the pressing issues of our times, is a cornerstone of liberal democratic theory. In practice, even in liberal democratic capitalist societies, press systems have never accomplished these laudable goals, though certain press systems, usually through progressive activism and reforms, have come much closer than others. The primary internal impediments to a viable free press have been private ownership of the media, and the drive to maximize profit, often through selling advertising. The primary external barriers are the difficulty of promoting a participatory democratic political culture in a class-divided society, as well as the constant pressure, direct and indirect, that elites put on the press to have it support elite aims. Radical press criticism, beginning most notably in the work of Marx, has never rejected Madison's notion of a free press. To the contrary, the gist of radical press criticism has emphasized the irreconcilable nature of the free press ideal with a capitalist society.