Making News

From CNN's live coverage of the Gulf War to televised images of the Soviet Union's collapse, the news has a profound effect on how we perceive and respond to world events. In this work, investigative journalist Marin Mayer aims to help us to understand the evolution of today's major news organizations, how they operate, and their pervasive influence on our lives. Mayer tells an insider's story of the history, goals, and current operations of the print and broadcast media. He cites disturbing trends in the way mainstream broadcast news organizations cover events, from the irresponsible use of spin-controllers to the blurred boundaries between entertainment and news. He offers analyses of such controversial subjects as the reporting on the Gulf War, the coverage of the Clarence Thomas hearings, and the coverage of recent banking debacles - the S&L disaster, Banca Nazionale del Lavoro and BCCI.
Mayer also discusses such issues as how new technologies are influencing the print and broadcast media; the evolution of television news from the heyday of CBS to the dominance of CNN; the relationship of celebrity to substance in politics; the deterioration of advertising support for print and broadcast media; and the shifting roles of national, local and special interest newspapers. His analyses of major news stories such as the Tylenol disaster of the 1980s allows him to explore the roles of reporters and their editors and to discuss the relationship of public relations professionals to senior managers affected by newsworthy events.