A Force for Good: How the American News Media Have Propelled Positive Change [Paperback]

Americas news media are relentlessly criticized as too negative, sensationalistic, profit-oriented, and biased, not to mention unpatriotic and a miserable failure at reflecting the nations diversity. Rodger Streitmatter makes clear that although much of the criticism is deserved, it obscures the fact that news outlets have also madeand continue to makemany positive contributions to the countrys well-being.

A Force for Good: How the American News Media Have Propelled Positive Change offers a compelling account of the Fourth Estates efforts to improve U.S. society. Whether documenting the appalling conditions in mental institutions, exposing financial shenanigans and sex-abuse scandals, or championing an obscure pill as a form of contraception, Streitmatter argues, print and broadcast journalists have propelled significant social topics onto the public agenda and helped build support for change. This text draws on both historical and contemporary examples from a wide range of social contexts; the result is a fascinating tour of American history, social change, and the benefits of a robust media.

Rodger Streitmatter is professor of journalism at American University. A journalist and historian, he is the author of several books and has contributed to numerous popular and scholarly periodicals, including The Washington Post, The Advocate, Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, and American Journalism. In 1995, he was honored as American Universitys Scholar/Teacher of the Year; he received the Roy F. Aarons Award from the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) in 2010.

Rather than writing a long narrative that tries to connect various themes, Streitmatter provides a series of vignettes that examine specific issues ranging from how society treats its citizens to civil rights and gender. Although this format can sometimes be chaotic, the author breaks each issue/chapter, 16 in all, into easily digestible chunks slӬ