How News Should Be Reported

And, how it shouldn't!
by Charlie Leck

In this morning's New York Times [17 June 2008] there is an interesting story about the System of Rice Intensification (S.R.I.) and Doctor Norman T. Uphoff, a professor at Cornell University. I urge you to read it [click here]. Both Uphoff and S.R.I. are very controversial in that they claim to have discovered a simple system to double rice production around the globe – all without increased capital investment.

Some scientists call it all hog-wash!

Here's the point. The story is written under the bi-line of William J. Broad. Congratulations to Mr. Broad for some fine reporting. It's the way reporting is suppose to work. Broad gives us a very thorough look at S.R.I. and explains it completely. He also details the opposition. The entire story is carefully sourced.

This is the way I want my news. The New York Times is better at it than any newspaper in America – followed closely by the L.A. Times.

FOX News is absolutely the way I don't want my news. What a crazy operation!

I've had great appreciation for CNN until lately. They give free rein to Lou Dobbs to make a complete idiot out of himself and he's done it in spectacular fashion. What a blow-hard! How they can put him on in the most important "news" time period of the day, I just don't understand! He rants and bellows just like the folks over at FOX. Just understand this. It ain't news – no how!

Like Limbaugh and O'Reilly, Dobbs has a strong, vocal following. That following is so strong now that CNN is afraid of it. The cable network knows that Dobbs has gotten out of hand, but it can't do anything to control him. It's a bad situation.

My solution? Do more reading! Hit the Internet and visit all the good alternative news sights.