Is there any wonder why the media's honeymoon with the Bush administration is over?
Three weeks ago, White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer begrudgingly clarified that there never was a threat to the president or a threat to Air Force One on Sept. 11. He had previously asserted otherwise and had refused to explain how this threat was determined.
Two weeks ago, the federal government reluctantly admitted that it had tested U.S. Capitol police dogs for anthrax before it tested postal workers throughout the District of Columbia.
Last week, Secretary of Health and Human Services Tommy Thompson finally reneged on a previous statement that has become a painfully obvious falsity--that the United States is in any way prepared to handle a determined biological terrorist.
We seem to be living in Genesis "Land of Confusion:" "Now did you read the news today/ They say the danger's gone away/ But I can see the fire's still alight / Burning into the night."
In the immediate aftermath of the 11th, our media knew more or less how to respond. They had to dust off the Desert Storm playbook and pull the domestic attacks guide out of its 60-year storage place, but the constant coverage, saturated with military and terrorism experts, up-front press briefings and the quick assembly of competent reporting from both Washington, D.C., and New York City, was something to be proud of. Our press was on its toes; Americans knew what to expect.
And then came anthrax--the little bacterium that has made our citizens into hypochondriacs, our news sources into targets and our government into a mess. It's a scary time, indeed, when the federal government is issuing more daily retractions than the major newspapers and networks.
I find blaming the citizenry for their reactions to the anthrax threat difficult. Given that all of the recipients of anthrax-by-mail have been high ranking government officials or important government office buildings, I must admit I find it ridiculous to see John Q. Public on the local news, wearing white gloves to open his mail. No offense to anyone in Pittsboro, but I think the odds of someone in your four-corner hamlet getting anthrax are about as likely as the terrorists attacking Cosmic Cantina.
It's not easy to blame the media for this anthrax mess, either. Covering press conferences is an effective way to inform the public. They have been pretty relentless in their pursuit of straight-talk from the administration--a pursuit that seems to grow more futile as the days continue. For the media I only have questions:
Who authorized Tom Brokaw's goofy statement (after his assistant was infected with anthrax), where the marble-mouthed broadcaster said there were no socially acceptable terms he could use to describe how he felt about the anthrax letter? Also, which words would Brokaw use? Is anything really that socially unacceptable on a network that airs Fear Factor?
How is Dan Rather defying the terrorists by not taking an anthrax test after his assistant was diagnosed with the disease? Succumbing to a fatal disease seems to be doing what the terrorists want, no? Getting tested and treated would be more in line with the concept of defying the terrorists.
Why did no one send anthrax to Peter Jennings? Is it because he is Canadian?
Is Fox behind the attacks? The other major networks have received anthrax-laden letters, but the fourth estate's number four has so far been immune. Then again, Fox's most prominent anchor-type person--NFL commentator Terry Bradshaw--already uses pretty socially unacceptable terms, not to mention constructions of grammar.
As for the government's role in this anthrax debacle: as unnerving as Secretary of Ineptitude Thompson and Secretary of Misinformation Tom Ridge are (their counterparts at the Departments of Justice and Defense have been remarkably straightforward), our nation should be more concerned with the way the United States has swiftly lost ground on the global public relations front. Make no mistake, we are currently losing the PR battle to a group of cave-dwelling murderers and the oppressive, stone-age government that protects them.
The 50-day-old coalition is beginning to show some cracks. We need to continue to retaliate with force and covert operations, but if we do not mute our increasingly unilateralist diatribes and start doing some more effective public relations, we are going to find ourselves standing alone. The Bush administration came into power with a lot of arrogance and then cooled off after it lost the Senate and after the 11th. But now that some time has passed, it seems like the administration is going back to its roots--self-righteousness in the face of world.
Bumbling news conferences are mild sign of how discombobulated the administration has become in the past couple weeks. We are currently embarking on a righteous mission of justice and beginning what could be a world-changing war against terrorists. But we are never going to win either battle without the support of the world. Hopefully someone at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. will refigure that out--soon.
Trinity senior Martin Barna is projects editor of The Chronicle and film editor of Recess.
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