To blame that mediocrity on “financial pressures, the demand of ratings, the changing tastes of the American public” is to absolve yourself and your colleagues of any responsibility. I think that is dishonest. What do those three elements have to do with the lack of standards in reporting? Financial pressures prevent you from asking the tough questions, from following up on assertions made? How? The demand of ratings prevent you and your colleagues from reporting on momentous, important stories that the (prior) administration wanted suppressed? How does that work? How does the “changing tastes” of the public figure in to this? I think that’s bull. People want excellent news reporting. You are lying to yourself if you think otherwise.

The truth is that it is YOU and your fellow broadcast “journalists” that have put the scare quotes around that term. Your colleagues have become too cozy and too comfortable with the people they are supposed to cover. You have forgotten, or never knew, that you are supposed to be reporting TO your audience, not transmitting spin FOR the people you cover. There’s where you and Walter Cronkite differ.

Yes, rating demands and public taste has changed but largely due to the type news shows we’re provided. Hopefully, Cronkite cringed as much as I do at Keith Olberman, Chris Matthews, Anderson Cooper, et al.