The Past and Future of Journalism with Eric Alterman

The 1970’s we were in something like a golden era of professional journalism. Jobs were plentiful. Much of the coverage out of Vietnam was extraordinary. The civil rights movement was documented by many first-rate, and brave, reporters and photographers. The New York Times and then other publications would soon be publishing the Pentagon Papers. Woodward and Bernstein would win a Pulitzer Prize for their outstanding coverage of the Watergate scandal. And so on. How things have changed. Donald Trump now refers to hard-working, responsible mainstream reporters as enemies of the people. Legitimate journalism outlets are hemorrhaging jobs. Bob’s guest, Eric Alterman, the media columnist for The Nation magazine, has written a piece lamenting the fact that on social media, toxic lies and rumors are in many cases filling the space once occupied by professional, evidence-based journalism.