Abasement

N. Action of humbling or degrading

Jon v. Jim

DING DING DING

I won't be the first to claim to know what the Jon Stewart v. Jim Cramer debate was even about, why it started etc. etc. BUut what I will comment on is a big thank you to Jon Stewart for calling out not just Cramer and CNBC, but ALL of the media for breaking basic journalism principles. I took an Intro to Journalism class in probably 10th grade, several years ago. I don't remember much from the class, but I do remember the first few weeks. We learned that the field of journalism and journalists had an obligation to reporting the truth and to ethical journalism. Progressively, my faith in our media has been lost due to almost laughable tendencies to shelter the CEO's and major corportations. In our high school class we often cited the importance of a media free from government intervention, my concern is not that the government is censoring our media and sharing of information, but rather corporate America is.

Watching the debate between Jim and Jon was interesting in that they seemed to be debating completely seperate topics. Jim was debating the work he has done over the years on his show "Mad Money" and his credibility as a host for that show. Jon was calling into question the entire network of CNBC and its oversight of reporting major information. Jon quite obviously won this debate, he had his points, made them, and overall jsut hammered his side home. I support Jon in his questioning the credibility of a network who doesn't research thier stories and question the testimonies of their interviewees. Jon did not seem, to me anyway, to ever question Cramer's abilities or his show. Jon, perhaps unfairly, targeted Cramer simpally as a cog in a very crooked machine.

In the end, the debate left me wondering the true role of media. If their job is to protect the big businesses in their obviously unlawful practices, at the expense of the rest of America, job well done. But if their role is, as I have always hoped it to be, one of impartial informing of America in the hopes of allowing citizens to make fair and educated opinions, it needs some work guys. No one is asking you to be a regulatory agency of economic issues, BUT your goals should be to fairly represent all parties involve and as a result, the Media DOES act as a regulatory force. Big business needs someone to answer too.

I should add, that I am a full proponent of the viewers of Jim Cramer's show realizing the need to do their own information hunt, research their options before laying down the cash. But if Jim Cramer cares for the average person as much as he claims he needs to make sure, to the fullest extent of his ability, that he is providing the most researched, most accurate answer to questions.

Hows that for a substantive post?

On a seperate note,
Happy Birthday Justin!!!