Whither the 4th Estate?

image couresy of the Oregon Historical Society

Last year, as part of a 6-part primer on changing Oregon politics, the Bend Bulletin's most excellent correspondant to the Oregon State legislature, James Sinks, wrote a piece about the decline in media coverage at the capitol.

The piece takes an even-handed view of the traditional role of the 4th estate, how the void is getting filled by special interests -- talk radio, the blogs, etc., and how this lack of coverage coupled with the partisan nature of the interests filling the void is contributing to a coarsening of our political climate.

When McCall was in charge, Oregon passed the bottle recycling bill and expanded the beach bill protecting the coast. Lawmakers assumed more control of land use planning and less control of marijuana.

But the blanket coverage also reflected a different mind-set in the media. Then, civic affairs were deemed important stuff and deserving of daily coverage.

Today, the lights are off most days at the Capitol offices of two of the three television stations that still rent space in the building — even when the Legislature is in session. Several stations are gone completely. There is no longer a full-time radio bureau in Salem.

As Oregon has evolved, so has the media — the main conduit for the public to learn about their government and the people running it.

And reporters aren’t just covering less politics.

They’re covering the news differently, focusing more on conflict rather than what the issues are. The mass media are increasingly accused of bias by politicians and the public and less likely to ask tough questions of sources.

Well worth reading the full piece, which discusses media consolidation and a host of other issues that have contributed to the decline in political coverage by the mainstream press.