ABSTRACT
In a time when old values are crumbling, when the miracle of advancing technology is suddenly seen to create as many problems as it solves. When disorder, turmoil, and violence become hallmarks of a nation—in such a time it cannot be surprising that the mass media, which are central to modern society, should feel the shock waves of change. This chapter focuses on the endless arguments on the validity of a term when the force it symbolizes is demonstrably real and important is semantic quibbling of an especially misleading kind. The increasing complexity of public affairs made it difficult to confine reporting to the straitjacket of unelaborated fact. Relaying exactly what a government official said was often misleading: even facts didn't speak the truth. Moreover, reporters discovered that they were in effect running errands for the establishment and enshrining the status quo; the sources of news releases, press conferences, and official statements were usually men with position and power.
