There has been a lot of discussion over the last few months (or possibly years) about the need for a progressive counterpart to Fox News. More recently, there has been speculation that such a news network could be on the horizon, possibly through the overhaul of one of Fox's two main competitors (see
"Buffet and Soros make intriguing purchases" by Kos). While there has been much discussion of the need of progressive news, there has been little discussion regarding what progressive news should look like.
Should progressive news be overtly partisan (and marketed that way) like Air America?
Or should progressive news be non-partisan, like straight news media is supposed to be, while emphasizing issues that matter to progressives (such as health care)? I would like to use this post for a discussion of what you think progressive news should look like, and what it could accomplish. My hope is that this discussion could help spark greater interest in the utility of a progressive news network. More below the fold.
Down here below the fold, I will make my case for the second path that I mentioned above. While these two "paths" fill different niches and could exist side-by-side as separate networks, I feel that the need for a non-partisan progressive news network is more pressing. And yes, the concept of a non-partisan progressive news network does seem contradictory. I will try to address this here.
What could a progressive news network accomplish?
A progressive news network would spread a progressive worldview. This worldview would be reflected as much in the choice of subjects covered as in the way the subjects were covered. By raising the prominence of certain issues over others, non-partisan progressive news can promote a progressive worldview. The power of the media to set the nation's agenda has been demonstrated time and again. My favorite example of this is the story of the origin of Nightline. Nightline began as a single-issue news special on the Iranian hostage crisis that ran every night. Nightly hammering on this issue ("its day 46 of the Iranian hostage crisis...") brought the issue to the front of the nation's agenda and arguably cost Jimmy Carter the presidency. Imagine giving the nation's Health Care crisis the same treatment ("its day 107 of the Health Care crisis, and another 32,000 Americans have lost their health insurance..."). This is the potential power of a non-partisan news show/network to advance a progressive agenda.
Chris Bowers (in "Swing Issue Index") has argued that raising the prominence of issues on which the public agrees with the Democrats could be the most effective way of winning elections for Democrats. I agree with Chris, and I think establishing a progressive news network would be the most effective way of raising the prominence of these issues.
How can a non-partisan news network be progressive?
A non-partisan news network can spread a progressive worldview through the subjects that it deems newsworthy. If the network deems there to be a "health care crisis" and gives this story prominent coverage on a regular basis, this spreads the progressive worldview. Even by covering this story in a non-partisan way (giving coverage and deference to both sides of the conflict), the fact that the story is treated as important news spreads the progressive worldview and differentiates the network from its competitors who are covering irrelevant news (the Michael Jackson trial, for example).
A non-partisan news network can be progressive through its selection of guests. Tired of seeing the Democrats represented by Joe Lieberman on TV? A progressive news network should seek out articulate progressives to represent the progressive side of the issues, while giving equal time to articulate (but well-behaved) conservatives. A progressive news network might also be a place where traditional conservatives would be given a platform to take issue with the decidedly non-conservative direction the Republican Party has taken.
Why should a progressive news network be non-partisan?
There are two major reasons that I believe a progressive news network should be non-partisan. First, the progressive news network is supposed to be a news network: a trusted, independent, source of news. The network will have greater credibility if it presents news stories in a non-partisan way. Unlike Fox News, the progressive news network will be truly fair and balanced in the way it covers its news stories. By the way, this leaves the market open for a liberal/progressive version of Fox News - the progressive news network discussed here does not fill the left-wing opinion/commentary market niche (a niche that Fox News arguably fills on the right).
The second reason that a progressive news network should be non-partisan is that I believe that progressive positions can win in a fair fight. Public opinion is overwhelmingly progressive when it comes to the issues that should be covered on a daily basis on the progressive news network (Public interest issues, health care, education, etc). By giving equal time to articulate spokespersons from both sides of these issues, the audience can feel that they are coming to their own conclusions about these issues instead of feeling manipulated into agreeing with the one-sided argument offered by a partisan source. I believe that this form of non-partisan presentation will change more minds than a one-sided partisan presentation that will be blocked out by many as propaganda.
There are many other issues that would need to be worked out in developing a progressive news network. However, I hope you get a clear picture of the style of network that I am promoting here. What do you think? What would you change? If you like what you see here, how can we bring this idea to reality? Could CNN be overhauled to become what I have described, or is the taint of what CNN has become too stinky to be converted? How would a new network be developed? Please add anything that comes to you to this discussion and spread this discussion around the blog-o-sphere. We need a traditional news media outlet to give prominence to the issues that affect Americans in their everyday lives. How do we get there?