THURSDAY'S LETTERS: E&P's Guillen Story 'Bleach Blond', Galloway an American Treasure, Iraq in the Media

By: E&P Staff In today's letters, praise for Joe Galloway, a reader find's E&P's Ozzie Guillen coverage "worthless", and another responds to Greg Mitchell's column about coverage of the Iraq war.


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Galloway an American Treasure

... [I consider Joe Galloway] an American treasure. He understands the soldier, the brave, the frightened, the patriots, and those who died too early to leave an impression. He has seen the waste of human lives and how life is forvever changed because Johnny went off to war. He brought the war home to those of us who had to be touched by the bloddy sewer that was war. He made heroes of what would have been a forgotten soldier. He fought to help get what they deserved. He is one of the last great heroes who told the story straight. In a time of politics and spin control, he rose above mediocrity. He didn't have the right politics or spin but he told the truth. Every soldier since Viet Nam has a friend in Joseph Galloway. ... God bless you Joe wherever you are. ...

Barbara Shomaker


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E&P Reveals Bleach-Blonde Roots With Guillen Story

Interesting article about Ozzie Guillen's lambaste against Jay Mariotti. "[A] slur associated with homosexuality"? The piece reads more like something a five-year-old would write. The "slur" couldn't have been the "f" word, could it? Typical gutless journalism. Once again, your religion of multiculturalism prevents you from providing the public -- which is far more astute and sturdy than bleach blond journalists -- with reliable, hard-hitting information. I suppose you would have been more inclined to reveal Mr. Guillen's remarks if he were a white man. Can journalism get any more worthless?

John Sulikowski


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Rather's Generation Made Journalism a Force

Dan Rather leaves, and the profession he helped elevate chases him out with Enquirer-worthy snipes. What were the headlines yesterday? "Rather Departs Under Cloud of Scandal," "Dan Rather Finally Quits Having Stayed Too Long." I think journalists have forgotten that before Rather and his generation, the media was a propaganda branch of government, a ventriloquist at the service of the party in power. Rather and his cohorts made journalism a force to be reckoned with. They actually told people things that mattered. They were arrogant, even haughty, because the government they went after had shamelessly abused power (kinda like today), and in order to take on those challenges you have to be rather fat in the head. You certainly can't accuse the press today of being fat in the head. I'd say "submissive" would be an apt description.

And perhaps that's the reason for all the nasty remarks as Rather fades. Today, radio, TV news and print journalism exist as a Bush Administration mouthpiece. Now that the last giant of the profession has departed, the media can get back to sniveling for a seat at the table.

Charles Sumnerian


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Media Missing the Point on Iraq

... It was clearly in the best interest of the big media players in this country to give George W. Bush his second chance [in 2004]. So, exit polls were withheld, election fraud was treated as something that happened in the Ukraine, pundits nodded their heads sagely as Mitofsky described the odd way that Republicans, who could usually be counted upon to be over represented in most polls because of their personal characteristics, had suddenly become reclusive and paranoid---and the nation's press essentially held its breath until the day after Congress signed George W. Bush up for a second term. Then, the very next day the unthinkable happened. Michael Powell, FCC head and Colin Powell's son, quietly announced that the administration would not appeal the court ruling as promised, thus ending the dream of relaxed federal media ownership rule changes.

The change in the news media's attitude towards the current administration was striking and sudden. By that summer, the White House press corp was openly attacking the press secretary. Only Fox News remained loyal. When Katrina struck, no attempt was made to white wash the administration's bungled response.

The players involved will deny with their last breath that the promise of mergers and the money and power that come from them had anything to do with their reporting on Election 2004, because journalism prides itself on being a scholarly pursuit. Maybe the individual journalists do not understand the reason for the attitude that trickled down from on high. Or maybe they did not want to understand. ... From my perspective as one outside that industry, it seems as clear as day what happened. It was no different than Big Oil supporting Bush because of his oil ties. Industries support the candidate which they believe will help them prosper financially.

McCamy Taylor
Fort Worth, Tex.