(C) Fairness & Accuracy in Media This story was originally published by Fairness & Accuracy in Media and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . What Journalists, Scholars and Activists Are Saying [1] ['Jim Naureckas'] Date: 2012-11-26 19:51:56+00:00 Noam Chomsky Linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, historian, social critic & political activist “What the FAIR collective, and the emphasis should be on the word collective, what it has accomplished in these years is quite remarkable. There are many people, and I’m definitely one of them, who are looking forward with eager anticipation to what’s sure to come next, to the insightful correctives, information, general enlightenment that doubtless lie ahead. I would just like to congratulate the collective on its wonderful achievements and hope that many others will be encouraged to join in this widely important work.” Barbara Ehrenreich Author & political activist “I promote FAIR wherever I go. It is one of the most important pro-democracy projects in the United States.” Robert W. McChesney Author, co-founder of Free Press & professor of communication at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, “FAIR acts almost alone as an advocate of democratic journalism. I cannot even conceive of what we would do without it.” Phil Donahue Creator and host of The Phil Donahue Show “Viva FAIR! May you live forever, may the stones that you are dropping in the water make bigger and bigger ripples in our culture. May you lead us to a return to the vision of the framers about which so many in government are so often bragging we want to get back to the Bill of Rights, we want to get back to insuring that America has a free, robust, cacophonous, sometimes nasty, sometimes difficult-to-love press that goes out there and gets the story that nobody else is getting.” Jonathan Kozol Author, activist & educator Extra! is fearless and essential and also utterly responsible, meticulous about accuracy both in detail and in content…. [FAIR is] the most consistent guardian we have not only of dissent but of impartiality.” Susan Faludi Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist & author “It is so important that we have an organization like FAIR: to challenge the crippling social myths that the right promulgates so successfully, to question the ‘values’ of an infotainment media, to expose the shoddy treatment that women and minorities receive in the press, and to appeal for a diverse and intelligent media that we all deserve and desperately need.” Abbie Hoffman Activist, co-founder of the Youth International Party, member of the Chicago Seven Extra! is the best media watch publication in the country; I’d be as confused as everyone else without it.” Jill Nelson Journalist & novelist “As a working journalist, I know that balance, perspective, and a critical eye are simultaneously what are most crucial to honest reportage and, often what are most easily lost in the rush to get a story done…. The work of FAIR has been invaluable in helping me to keep that balance. “The arrival of Extra! each month is analogous to a collective report card for those in the business of journalism. It tells me which stories hit the mark, which missed, and why.” Studs Terkel Pulitzer Prize-winning writer, historian, actor & broadcaster “In Extra!, I find all the news that the Respectables find unfit to print. It is great therapy for me; it keeps my blood pressure down and my skull from going numb.” Judy Muller Broadcast journalist “I believe the work of FAIR is, indeed, extremely fair. Not only is the work of this fine organization well-researched and articulated, but it is necessary. I say this as an ABC correspondent (based in Los Angeles for ‘World News Tonight‘ and ‘Nightline‘) whose network is often skewered by this organization. Often (too often!) I agree with their criticism. “Fairness & Accuracy in Reporting stands alone in countering the myriad media critics on the far right…. Now and then, their criticisms are on target, as well, but I strongly believe we need a counterbalance. FAIR provides that.” Edward S. Herman Economist, media scholar & social critic “FAIR has done an exceptional job in media monitoring and criticism, maintaining a high quality research effort, effectively tapping academic analysts as well as media participants, and avoiding stridency, preaching, and political bias. “[FAIR is] a notable example of the kind of critical and constructive media organization that serves an essential democratic function, that we need to encourage and supplement if we are to democratize the media and make it more a servant of the larger public interest.” Joel Rogers Academic, political activist, director of Center on Wisconsin Strategy & professor of law, political science, public affairs and sociology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison [END] --- [1] Url: https://fair.org/about-fair/what-journalists-scholars-and-activists-are-saying/ Published and (C) by Fairness & Accuracy in Media Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 3.0. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/fair/