Newspapers 'versus' public relations

We've seen the infographics all over Twitter and elsewhere, how there used to be one journalist to one pubic relations person and there's now, what, six PR flacks to one journo or something like that.

But, that assumes that journalists — or their bosses and corporate masters at least — aren't into public relations themselves. That's true at both the national and the local level.

Major dailies are indeed into PR in foreign relations, with their customer being the United States government and the bipartisan foreign policy establishment. The Venezuela coup and the pile-on against Rep. Ilham Omar on AIPAC are clear examples.

On the domestic side? Major dailies still paddle lightly on single-payer, don't localize the realities of what climate change will cause — and how ending fossil fuel tax credits would fund a Green New Deal — and other things.

Regional major dailies, and national ones, are also loathe to attack local big biz. Did the New York Times look at the real cost of Amazon's second HQ? The Houston Chronicle explain the reality of how fracked wells have rapid depletion rates and are generally money losers? No and no. The Chicago Trib look closely years ago at Rahm Emanuel's privatization? No. It may eventually have looked at the craptacular police department, but anything financial? No.

But, it's not just nationally.

Local newspapers, despite claims otherwise, pull punches in news stories, columns and house editorials. Don't think otherwise.

The online only Gnu Media? Don't think they're that much better. Many of them are one-person ownership, and the staff ain't biting the hand that fees them.

Accepting that, and accepting that some newspapers are worse about it than others, may help you as you decide whether to get into, or stay in, journalism or not.