By Carl M. Cannon

Real Clear Politics

June 1, 2020

 

A hundred cities woke up today to broken glass on the sidewalks, burned-out buildings, vulgar and threatening graffiti sprayed on buildings and streets. All this while a pandemic has claimed 106,000 American lives and strictures intended to stem the pathogen's spread have crashed the U.S. economy. Meanwhile, none of these interlocking crises have made our leading civic institutions any less partisan, apparently, and that includes the media.

Do you recall when the 24-hour news cycle was envisioned as a technological advancement that would keep Americans better informed? Well, cable news has the wherewithal to do just that, but there are business considerations at play that mitigate the good, along with human considerations: political bias, personal pettiness, and the pressures of competition. Much of that was unforeseen 40 years ago today when Ted Turner launched CNN.