Today we had another live taping of C-SPAN’s “The Washington Journal” to start our day off. The guest was White House Press Secretary, Dana Perino. One student in the audience asked her how realistic it is to get major issues done within the first 100 days of President-Elect Obama’s administration. She stressed how issues are tougher and more complex today saying, “things have changed from FDR’s 100 days…” I would have to agree with her. The economy will not be solved in the first 100 days and I don’t think our troops will be home either — but that’s another story for another day.
After the C-SPAN taping was finished, we heard from Ted Koppel. Mr. Koppel was the host of ABC News Nightline and is now a Senior News Analyst for National Public Radio (NPR) and the BBC. After polling the audience, Mr. Koppel said journalists should not and cannot question how what they report will be perceived and ultimately affect others. Besides the obvious that it’s not usually possible to predict all outcomes, he said that journalists’ only responsibility is for “the accuracy and objectivity of the story.”
Mr. Koppel also spoke of the change in news media that he has seen during his career. No, he wasn’t talking about the 24/7 media or blogs. Instead he spoke of the fact that news has become a business. Mr. Koppel stressed that when he started with ABC, the news shows weren’t expected to make money — that was for the entertainment and late night television shows. Today, we’re experiencing larger audiences and increased advertising — particularly with new and alternative forms of media. Because of this, many bureaus are closing, reporters are losing their jobs and many newspapers are reducing the number of days they print.
Next we heard from Clarence Page, a columnist from The Chicago Tribune. Mr. Page spoke primarily about the transition to power that President-Elect Obama has been facing as well as obstacles he has overcome in the process. While this portion of our seminar was interesting, the questions seemed to get off track and take the conversation to a broader level.
Our whole group headed to Ella’s in Chinatown for lunch and then headed to Embassy Row for our site visit at the Algerian Embassy. We spoke with Ambassador Abdallah Baali, who has only been holding his position for a couple months. He previously worked as an ambassador to the United Nations. Several questions were asked about U.S.-Algerian relations, allies of Algeria and President Bush’s malaria initiative. I can’t speak for the others, but it certainly educated me more about other challenges in Africa I was unaware of.
Well, it’s been a long day and the extensive activities and schedules are starting to catch up with me. Tomorrow is another day, so I’m off to recharge.
