I have Hope!

This morning I saw something I had despaired of ever seeing again. I sat, eyes wide, mouth agape, as I attempted to process what my senses were perceiving. I actually saw Fox News return to it's slogan of "We Report, You Decide" instead of it's recently more appropriate epithet of "We Distort, You Decide".

Wednesday, October 28th 2008, just 6 days prior to one of the most important, momentous occasions in our Nation's voting history, Fox News began to reclaim it's journalistic integrity. They have reported, both on TV and on the Internet (http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/10/28/la-times-refuses-release-tape-obama-praising-controversial-activist/)
that there is a bias in the media against John McCain. Fox reported that the LA Times is 'burying' a video tape that, if released, would severely damage Obama's position as the heir presumptive of the White House.

The LA Times has in it's possession a video tape of a farewell dinner thrown for Rashid Khalidi, where Barak Obama spoke about his personal and professional relationship and camaraderie with Rashid Khalidi.

Who is Rashid Khalidi? He was Professor of Middle East History in the Department of Near East Languages and History at the University of Chicago. He received his B.A. from Yale University in 1970, and his D.Phil. from Oxford University in 1974. He has taught at the Lebanese University, the American University of Beirut, and Georgetown and Columbia universities. He is past President of the Middle East Studies Association, and was an advisor to the Palestinian delegation to the Madrid and Washington Arab-Israeli peace negotiations from October 1991 until June 1993. Currently, he holds the anonymously endowed Edward Said Chair at Columbia University in New York.

He is the author of several books and articles on the Palestinian/Israeli affairs. He is staunchly pro-Palestinian, against Israeli and American policies in the region, as reported in the past by the New York Times and the Washington Post. He calls Israel an "apartheid system in creation" and a "racist state" that "brainwashed" Americans do not understand. Jerusalem, he deems "an Arab city" whose control by Israeli "foreigners" is "unacceptable." He now denies his involvement with Yasser Arafat in the 1970's and 1980's, when Arafat and the PLO were still considered terrorists for their penchant for hijacking airplanes and blowing things up. He states he was never an 'employee' of the PLO or of Yasser Arafat, and cites that distinction as proof of his distance from Arafat and the PLO during that time frame. Recently, he has owned and bragged about his position and influence of and by the Palestinian Authority leadership both past and present.

Just to keep the waters crystal clear, I happen to believe in the creation of a Palestinian Soveriegn Nation. I do not believe Israel's right to exist is any stronger than Palestine's. I simply do not believe ANYONE, has a right to exist at the expense and exclusion of another. I do not pretend to have the answers to the 'Palestinian Question', but I do believe that Americans do not fully understand the situation there, nor are we likely to in the near future, at least on a national scale because of the equally wrong fear-mongering and hyperbole issuing from both sides.

Why does it matter who Rashid Khalidi is? In the long haul, it doesn't matter as much as the relationship between Khalidi and Obama. The definitive answer to the question of how much Obama supports Khalidi's ideals and his true feelings on this subject are contained in this unreleased video tape the LA Times is suppressing. What will be most telling is listening to Obama's words on that tape, then his words prior to the full disclosure of the tape, and ultimately his side-stepping, tap dancing and loop-de-loops to cover his inconsistencies and flat-out lies. This tape will also show Obama's relationship both personal and professional with William Ayers, another attendee of the event.

And the LA Times simply cannot allow any of this. Their pretensions to journalistic integrity would be laughable if the consequences weren't so serious. They claim they are protecting and honoring the wishes of their 'source'. They claim they reported on the existence of this tape months ago, and have issued their last statement on the subject. They have also endorsed Barak Obama in his bid for President.

So, the LA Times is either protecting their candidate, or protecting themselves. They admit they knew the contents of this tape prior to their endorsement. Which means that either in spite of or because of the sentiments expressed by their candidate on this tape, they chose to endorse him for the highest office of the land. Sad to say, but it will probably be left to the National Enquirer or some other traditionally viewed 'yellow' journalistic outfit to find and release this or another tape of the event.

What in all of this has given me hope? Fox News has been as guilty of partisanship and biased reporting as all the other news outlets. I have already commented on my dismay at realizing the charge of 'liberal, biased news organizations' has some validity in this campaign. The fact that Fox News, and now other outlets, are 'outing' this scandalous situation tells me the 'heir presumptive' thinking may have been premature. There is nothing the media hates more than being wrong.

The media in this country have become self-appointed prognosticators. The media want to tell us they know, because of their position as investigators and editorialists, where the country is headed. They know the American people, are one of 'us', and therefore can predict the mood of the country. This is not their job. Their job is to report the facts that are out there, not create them, not slant them, and most certainly not to even attempt to influence them.

They have been by and large reporting that Obama will win. Now that the election will by all measures be much closer, and in all probability too close to call until the fat lady actually sings, they cannot afford to have been wrong. So, they are at least in this one small measure, attempting to level the playing field.

There have been small, quiet noises for the past week or so, with headlines like "What if McCain wins?" and "Will people actually vote the way they have told the Pollsters?". I think the term 'hedging their bets' is appropriate.

And that is what has given me hope. I have been fearing the outcome of this election was a foregone conclusion, largely because of the media bias. There have been stories, and valid accusations that have gone mostly under-reported if not all together ignored, that if given the full spotlight the media is capable of mustering, would completely sideline Obama's chance of a win on November 4th.

To continue to appear valid and unbiased, the media has been guilty of practicing 'damning with faint praise'; when a question is raised, the question is publicized, but editorialized and spun to favor Obama. The media can then justifiably state the question was covered. What cannot be justified is the lack of investigative follow-up required to unearth the truth, which ever way that truth will point.

I will make a prediction here and now. I will predict that over the coming days, media outlets across America will begin to air stories that question the validity of the polls they have so lovingly broadcast. They will begin to air stories that the American people, while not perhaps completely abandoning Obama, are looking at the depth, scope and sheer number of unanswered questions about Obama's associations, refusals to release records from birth thru college and what all that means about his character. The media will report that because of this, the election is far from a foregone conclusion. They will call McCain the underdog, and state it is a tradition in this country for the underdog to win, that it is the definition of the American Experience. They will turn McCain's possible win into a Horatio Algiers story for the 21st Century. And they will then point to their 11th hour prognostications as proof of their ability to accurately take the temperature of the American people. There are some media outlets that will, however, be unable to distance themselves from their obvious bias, and they will hopefully suffer the consequences of the justified wrath of the American public.

This Presidential election has become a three-way race in that if McCain wins, there will be two losers. Barak Obama and the American Media. The media holds a public trust no less important than that of our government. Actually, more important and more sacred. We turn to the media for truth. We hope that at least the media won't lie to us, won't put it's needs, it's agenda, ahead of the welfare of the people. We rely on the media to root out the dishonest, the untrustworthy and the downright dangerous demagogues we errantly place in public office. We expect the unvarnished, un-whitewashed facts to be placed before us for us to use in making our decisions. When the media loses that trust, as many outlets stand to over this election, the American people have lost their one, last best hope.