ABSTRACT
Media representatives claim authority in matters of language, and use that manufactured authority as a tool to coerce agreement on a wide range of public issues. A study of the various media outlets provides many examples of how representatives see themselves and want to be seen. Editorial opinions are not out of place in any kind of information media, as long as they are clearly marked as such. Every exchange of information comes with a context that is relevant to understanding the speaker’s intent. The purposeful lack or withholding of information is just as significant as the presentation of demonstrable fact. An unprecedented wealth and variety of information, analysis and opinion became – and continues to become – available. The information industry got involved. Rather than simply observing and reporting news from the campaign, news media began to fold information and reports about Fey’s parody of Palin into their coverage, obscuring the line between satire and news.
