When November 8 dawned and the world froze waiting for America to straighten out1 that messy election result, I began saving my newspapers, the International Herald2 Tribune3. I stacked them chronologically4 and when the Supreme Court made the appointment, I placed the stack in a clear plastic bag and put them in storage. I wanted my grandchildren to have them, knowing that this election was going to be one of America's historical bookmarks.
A few weeks later I began saving again. Was I becoming an eccentric5 hoarder? Not at all. The biggest part of the story had just begun. The newspapers had fallen into a stunning silence. A blackout6 on news began. Instead of diving into the fraud and corruption of the Florida election, ferreting out the Deep Throats, and combing through the biographies of the five treasonous7 Supreme Court justices who put the bullet through the heart of democracy in America, they shut up and behaved as if nothing was happening.
In five years, in ten years when the Election 2000 is added to our little pile of historical horrors--i.e. slavery, the Civil War, Watergate, encouraging the world to smoke, allowing health insurance companies to regulate health care--this failure of the press to act is going to be a significant part of the pile.
We know the problem. The media is now run by corporations who want to make money, entertain, not cause any ruckuses8, be as bland9 and inoffensive10 as possible, avoid costly investigations and possible litigations11. Ignore, hide, deflect12, cower, and fawn have to be the action verbs in the job descriptions of American journalists today. Make money and then make some more money. And then figure out how to be more mainstream to make even more money. They cling to the unprincipled13 safe middle of every issue.
We are a country that thrives on14 ideas and information. We are a country that cherishes15 our right to know the truth. If one is born with a curious mind that hasn't been fed by responsible journalism, this is a serious psychological and intellectual betrayal16. I use to feel very aligned17 to journalists. I love words and I love the way truth stands with confident and elegant integrity18. People who love words and seek the truth would not be part of an organization flaunting19 the nonsense that our media now flaunts. Cognitive20 slaps and insults happen every time I open the floppy pages.
I am standing for truth. I am standing for democracy. I am standing with the American people and we deserve a better press.
美国新闻媒体的失败
当11月8日来临的时候，整个世界静静等待美国把一团糟的大选结果弄清楚，我开始收集我的报纸《国际先驱论坛报》。我把它们按时间顺序放好，当最高法庭作出任命后，我把这堆报纸放进一个透明塑料袋存放起来。我希望我的孙辈们能够看到这些报纸。我知道这次大选将会成为美国历史上的一个重大事件。
几个星期以后我又开始收集报纸。是我变成了一个古怪的收藏者吗？根本不是。好戏才刚刚开始。报界陷入令人吃惊的沉默。对新闻的管制开始了。媒体没有对佛罗里达州大选的欺诈和腐败行为进行调查；找出匿名揭发此事的内情提供者；弄清楚最高法院五位背信法官的历史背景——这些人对美国民主造成了致命伤害；相反，它沉默不语,就好像什么事也没有发生。
再过五到十年，当2000年大选同农奴制、美国内战、水门事件、鼓励世人抽烟、允许医疗保险公司制定医疗保障制度一起成为历史丑闻的时候，这次媒体没能履行职责也将成为这些丑闻的重要组成部分。
我们知道问题所在。媒体是由公司运作的，公司要的是赚钱、娱乐，而不是惹麻烦，要尽可能地温和，不去冒犯别人，避免代价高昂的调查和可能的官司。“不理不睬，东躲西藏，转移视线，畏缩不前，趋炎附势”不得不成为今日美国记者工作中的行为动词。赚钱，然后再多赚点钱。接着盘算如何随大流赚更多的钱。他们对任何事情都严守不讲道德以求保险的折中立场。
我们的国家因思想开通、信息畅达而兴盛。我们的国家珍惜知情权。如果一个生来就有好奇心的人，总是看不到负责任的新闻报道，这是一个非常严重的心理和智力的背叛。我过去常常和新闻记者看法一致。我喜欢新闻，喜欢真相以一种自信而优雅的诚实方式表现出来。热爱新闻和寻求真理的人们不会像我们现在的新闻媒体那样，成为炫耀失实报道的组织的一员。每次我翻开报纸，都能感受到打击和侮辱。
我维护事实真相。我维护民主。我和美国人民站在一起，我们应该有一个更好的新闻媒体。
1.straighten[5streitn]vi.[美口]改正(与out搭配)
2.herald[5herEld]n.先驱者，预报者
3.Tribune[5tribju:n]n.(常用于报刊名)论坛，讲坛
4.chronologically[7kron[5lBdVik[li]adv.按年月顺序排列地
5.eccentric[ ik5sentrik ]adj.(人、行为等)古怪的
6.blackout[5blAkaut]n.(新闻等的)封锁
7.treasonous[5tretFErEs]adj.叛逆的，奸诈的
8.ruckus[5rQkEs]n.[美口]吵闹，骚动
9.bland[blAnd]adj.无刺激性的，温和的
10.inoffensive[7inE5fensiv]adj.不触犯人的
11.litigation[7liti5^eiFEn]n.诉讼
12.deflect[di5flekt]vt.转移，引开
13.unprincipled[Qn5prinsEpld]adj.不讲道德的
14.thrive[Wraiv]vi.(常与on搭配)繁荣，旺盛
15.cherish[5tFeriF]vt.珍视，抱有
16.betrayal[bi5trei]n.背叛，出卖
17.align[E5lain]vt.使成一直线
18.integrity[in5te^riti]n.诚实
19.flaunt[flC:nt]vt.夸耀，夸示
20.cognitive[5kC^nitiv]adj.认识的，以实际经验为根据的
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