In the wake of ABC News President David Westin's initial refusal to offer an opinion on whether the Pentagon was a “legitimate” terrorist target, it was reassuring to hear another network news executive, NBC's Tim Russert, proclaim that while “we are journalists…we are also Americans” and so “we must always reject any attempt to suggest a moral equivalency between the United States of America and the terrorists.”
Russert's comments, quoted on November 1 by USA Today “Inside TV” columnist Peter Johnson, were made back on October 26, three days after Westin spoke at Columbia University, but the night before Westin's remarks were run by C-SPAN. In addition to serving as moderator of Meet the Press, Russert is Vice President of NBC News.
Johnson relayed Russert's advice to his journalistic colleagues:
“In times of war, the media should lower our voices, modulate our tone. Yes, we are journalists, but we are also Americans,” Russert said in a speech Friday to the Congressional Medal of Honor Society. Russert said that as the war on terrorism unfolds, the media and the government “will have serious disagreements over what is fair, timely or relevant — or even what should be defined as a threat to national security. But we should not and will not report anything which puts our troops at risk, and we must always reject any attempt to suggest a moral equivalency between the United States of America and the terrorists.”
Russert cited a National Journal article last week that said that “for wartime journalists it's essential to avoid the blind patriotism that can grow from righteous indignation, and the blind distrust of government that's a natural reaction to the stepped-up secrecy and propaganda.”
“We are at war, and all of us must come together as never before,” Russert said. “Simply put: There are those who want to destroy us, our people — men, women and children — our institutions, our way of life, our freedom. This presents some interesting issues for the media.”
(This update courtesy of the Media Research Center.)
