Summary Of The Idiot Culture

Lamenting the downgrade in journalism since the 1970s, investigative journalist Carl Bernstein wrote in his 1992 article “The Idiot Culture” that “for more than fifteen years we have been moving away from real journalism toward the creation of a sleazoid infotainment culture.” Bernstein and fellow reporter Bob Woodward are arguably the most prominent duo in American journalism, made famous for their outstanding reporting on the Watergate scandal as staff writers at The Washington Post. The two began investigating the scandal on June 17, 1972, when police arrested five men for breaking into and bugging the Democratic National Committee’s headquarters at the Watergate Hotel in Washington, D.C. While most other newspapers dropped the story after

By the fall of 1973, the duo was speaking about Watergate all over the country. In January of 1974, their book All the President’s Men, which chronicled their investigation and showed the hard work of journalists, hit bookshelves nationwide. It was an instant success, receiving stellar reviews and lending well to their wealth and stardom. However, their real fame came from the 1976 movie adaptation of the book, also titled All the President’s Men, starring Hollywood actors Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman as Woodward and Bernstein, respectively. Reviews for the movie were glowing, 98% being positive. Millions of people saw the film and hundreds of thousands read the book. The duo became incredibly well-known, even more famous than the people they wrote about; every one of their moves and appearances made the news. The movie also made famous another essential character in their story, Woodward’s main anonymous source in the investigation, known under the pseudonym Deep Throat. Although he was mentioned often in the book, his reputation as a mysterious and brooding whistleblower was created by the movie’s distorted portrayal of him as only appearing in secluded meeting spots, constantly chain smoking and barely visible through the shadows of the night. The identity of Deep

In 1975, the non-profit organization Investigative Reporters and Editors was founded to provide training in the same investigative techniques that Woodward and Bernstein so skillfully employed in their Watergate investigation and and vouch for reporters’ rights. Congress strengthened legislation to aid journalists, like the Freedom of Information Act of 1974, which forced federal organizations to respond to information requests from newspapers and journals within 10 days of their filing. In the mid- to late-1970s, the number of students seeking journalism degrees increased exponentially and numerous newspapers and TV stations formed investigative sectors. IRE Director Brant Houston said Woodward and Bernstein’s reporting not only “solidified the critical importance of investigative reporting,” but also “provided the inspiration for thousands of young people to become investigative journalists who wanted to make a difference.” Their glory and success also triggered an upwards trend in the American public’s faith in the press. It was at an all-time high in the mid-1970s, right after Watergate subsided, when seven in 10 Americans said that they trusted reporters and 75% of Americans gave the media credit for preventing corruption in the government. Woodward and Bernstein’s reporting transformed them