DISCUSSION GUIDE DISCONNECTED: Politics, the Press and the Public 2 DISCONNECTED: Politics, the Press and the Public Acknowledgments DISCONNECTED: Politics, the Press This guide was and the Public produced by Executive Producer: Richard Kilberg Producer: Megan Cogswell Educational Publishing Department Writer: Joan I. Greco Publisher: Robert A. Miller Executive Director: Barbara E. Margolis Editor: Editorial Advisor: Christina L. Draper Ruth Friendly Writer: Moderator: Annalisa Hill Arthur Miller Editorial Assistant: Jennifer L. Toro This program is a production of Fred Friendly Seminars at the Columbia University Graduate Designer: School of Journalism in association with The Century Clive Helfet Foundation and Thirteen/WNET New York. Advisors: Major funding for DISCONNECTED: Politics, the Zachary Goodyear Press and the Public was provided by the Ford Foundation, a resource for innovative people and Choate Rosemary Hall institutions worldwide. Additional funding was pro- John Pavlik vided by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Center for New Media © 2000 Fred Friendly Seminars, Inc. and Thirteen/WNET Columbia University Fred Friendly Seminars, Inc. Eric Rhodes Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism The Century Foundation 2950 Broadway, New York, NY 10027 www.fredfriendlyseminars.org Photo: AP/Worldwide 1 DISCONNECTED: Politics, the Press and the Public Program Scheduling Dear Viewer, DISCONNECTED: Politics, the Press and the Public premieres on PBS stations on Friday, The election process in our country has always been a fascinating puzzle, June 2, 2000 at 9 PM ET (check local listings). and the role of our free press has always been a critical piece of that puzzle. Today, a new media environment is making campaign coverage increasingly Video Ordering Information instantaneous and pervasive, and this is raising provocative questions. As we DISCONNECTED: Politics, the Press and the read and watch the news about the presidential election we have to wonder – Public is available on videocassette from: “Whom do I believe?” “What do I believe?” “What stories get covered?” “Who decides?” and “How does the media affect the election process?” Films for the Humanities and Sciences P.O. Box 2053 Princeton, NJ 08543-2053 These types of questions and their significance to our democracy prompted Phone toll-free: 800.257.5126 The Fred Friendly Seminars to produce “DISCONNECTED: Politics, the Press Web site: www.fi lms.com and the Public.” The program challenges you to think about the different points of view that politicians and the press bring to a campaign and our Video Taping Rights responsibilities as media consumers and citizens. We have designed this Off-air taping rights of DISCONNECTED: Discussion Guide to support your efforts to engage these issues and to inspire Politics, the Press and the Public are available activities in your community and school. We hope you will get a dialogue to educators for one year following each started about media coverage that can make a difference in connecting the broadcast release. public and the election process. At Fred Friendly Seminars, we want to use the Internet as a forum to share ideas, so report back to us on what you did in your community or school, what came out of these efforts, and what you learned. We’ll post what you tell us on our site at www.fredfriendlyseminars.org as part of our effort to connect! We look forward to hearing from you. Ruth Friendly PROGRAM DESCRIPTION 2 DISCONNECTED: Politics, the Press and the Public This Discussion Guide includes Dramatic changes in the news media over the following: the last decade have created a new kind of campaign coverage, and the press, politicians and the public are increasingly uncomfort- ● Brief biographies of the panelists. able with the impact of this voracious news ● An introductory group exercise machine. Traditional news sources like daily based on two hypothetical scenarios newspapers and network news programs to generate discussion. now compete for scoops with 24-hour cable ● Recommended program segments news channels, and rumors turn into news for group viewing and questions to as fast as they surface on the Internet. In this encourage critical thinking and dia- over-heated media environment, politicians rely on image consultants and pollsters to shape logue about the issues. their message and insulate them from an ● Resources, including organizations onslaught of journalists looking for an exclu- and Web sites that will be helpful sive story. The public decries tawdry cover- in learning more about the issues age, but delivers a ratings bonanza when the discussed in DISCONNECTED: latest scandal erupts. PRODUCTION PHOTO Politics, the Press and the Public. TO COME With voter turnout in national elections at an all-time low, is the media part of the prob- lem or just a mirror for America’s new politi- cal realities? DISCONNECTED: Politics, the Press and the Public peels back the head- lines to look at the process driving campaign Photo: Lisa Berg coverage. Using the signature Fred Friendly Panel discussion in progress Seminar format, a panel comprised of lead- ers in journalism and politics reveals the economic pressures, personal agendas, and professional judgements that are shaping what America learns about its candidates. 3 DISCONNECTED: Politics, the Press and the Public Congressman Bob Barr has represented Georgia’s Seventh Congressional District in the United States House of Representatives since 1995. He has been recognized as one of the top 50 legislators in the House and Senate by Congressional Quarterly magazine, and as one of the “25 Most Power- Congressman Bob Barr ful and Influential Georgians” by Georgia Trend. (R-GA) Joan Blades is the co-founder of the Internet activist group MoveOn.org, which has organized various political action events involving thousands of volunteers. A software-industry veteran, she previously founded the leading software entertainment company Berkeley Systems. Joan Blades Mayor Bill Campbell is Atlanta’s third African-American mayor. He has served Atlanta for seven years promoting his vision for a New Atlanta. The city’s revitalization has emerged as a model for other cities in the United States. Chuck D is a recording artist who serves as the leader of the seminal rap group Public Enemy. He Mayor Bill Campbell co-founded the Web site Rapstation.com, a global hip-hop community resource. Chuck D works with his nonprofit organization REACH, The Creative Coalition, and is a member of the Board of Directors of “Rock the Vote.” He has lectured at more than 150 colleges and universities, including Harvard, Yale, Howard, and Morehouse. Chuck D Ramon Escobar is the recently appointed executive producer for MSNBC, responsible for all breaking news coverage and hard-news programming, except for The News with Brian Williams. He previously served as the vice president and news director for NBC6/WTVJ in Miami. Under his leadership, WTVJ was recognized by Columbia University’s Project for Excellence in Journalism in the “best newscast” category for south Florida, and second overall in the country. Ramon Escobar Congressman Barney Frank was elected by Massachusetts voters in 1980 to the United States House of Representatives, where he continues to serve today. He is a member of the Judiciary Committee and the Banking Financial Services Committee. The Almanac of American Politics Congressman Barney called Frank “one of the intellectual and political leaders of the Democratic Party in the House, Frank (D-MA) political theorist and pit bull at the same time.” THE PANELISTS 4 DISCONNECTED: Politics, the Press and the Public Jeff Greenfield is co-anchor and senior analyst for CNN’s The World Today, co-anchor for CNN & TIME, and senior analyst for CNN’s Inside Politics and their election coverage. Greenfield writes a column for Time magazine and is the author or co-author of nine books, including Television: The First 50 Years, The Real Campaign, and his first novel, The People’s Choice. He has garnered many Jeff Greenfield awards over the course of his career, including three Emmys for his contribution to Nightline’s South Africa specials in 1985 and 1990, and for a prime-time special on Ross Perot in 1992. Gwen Ifill has reported on the White House, Congress, presidential campaigns, and government for newspapers and television. Currently, Ifill appears on PBS as both a Washington-based senior Gwen Ifill correspondent for The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer and a moderator on Washington Week in Review. Ifill previously spent five years at NBC News where she covered politics, public affairs and national trends for Nightly News with Tom Brokaw, Today, and MSNBC. She has also worked as a political reporter for The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Baltimore Evening Sun, and The Boston Herald American. Geneva Overholser Geneva Overholser is a syndicated columnist with The Washington Post Writers Group. She has served as a board member and officer of the American Society of Newspaper editors, and was for nine years a member of the Pulitzer Prize Board, for the last year as Chair. Overholser was named “Best in the Business” in the American Jounalism Review and “Print Journalist of the Year” by the Dan Rather National Press Foundation. Dan Rather joined CBS News in 1962, and he has handled some of the most challenging assign- ments in journalism. Since 1981, he has served as anchor and managing editor of the CBS Evening News. Rather has received virtually every honor in broadcast journalism, including numerous Ed Rollins Emmy Awards, the Peabody Award, and citations from critical, scholarly, professional, and chari- table organizations. Ed Rollins is an advisor on campaign and communications strategies for companies, national governments, and candidates for public office around the globe. Mr. Rollins is a frequent televi- sion commentator, appearing regularly on such programs as NBC’s Meet the Press, ABC’s This Week and Nightline, and CNN’s Larry King Live and Crossfire.