To the editor:
David Hill’s Oct. 5 response letter (“Condemning press for lack of integrity not the real problem,” A6) to Mr. Schafer’s Sept. 26 letter (“Mainstream media has already lost integrity,” A4) was right on target and warrants applause.
Of all institutions in this country, the media, be it print or broadcast, is consistently the most self-policing and self-critical. The media admits mistakes and errors and routinely punishes those in the industry who violate the basic standards of journalism. Few other professions appear to take their ethical standards as seriously.
Added to Mr. Hill’s concerns over the loss of qualified reporters and editors should be the apparent unwillingness of news consumer to pay for good journalism, take the time to fully read intricate news articles or listen to thought-provoking commentators in order to gain an understanding of complex national and local issues.
Too many of us want our information to be free and, maybe more importantly, too many of us want it to be simple. There is truth to the axioms, “so many simple answers, so few simple problems” and “you don’t always get what you pay for, but you won’t get anything you don’t pay for.”
Mike Fleck
McCordsville
