What has always amazed me is the way the right wing commentariat and their apologists love to dish it out but aren't able to handle any criticism coming back at them.
Talk back radio shock jocks and the Murdoch attack robots have had it far too easy for too long. I mean why is it acceptable for people like comrade Bolt to continue to pen his bile - all designed to stir up the bogan class - and to name climate scientists? And for those scientists to then receive death threats from his readership - all with no cost and no penalty? Seriously.
Freedom of speech is very important - but so is responsibility and accountability.
I suspect the main issue here is the same one that affects most of the people who are employed in the journalism game in our nation - fear. Fear that if they step out of line and criticise a colleague then they will find it very hard to gain a promotion or another job. They will be ostracised.
The old boys club is very much alive in the rarefied atmosphere of our media. And that's no way to run an important industry that depends on fearless pursuit of the truth and the facts.
And the other thing that amazes me is why at least one of our daily newspapers hasn't worked out that there is a real market for truth and facts. I mean their circulation is in free fall for a number of reasons - one of which is that fluff and bubble and made up stuff is not really compelling anymore. Was it ever?
But the huge success of Crikey and The Conversation shows that people will respond to quality. Surely someone in power in the MSM can see the future - why won't they give it a go?
Because they think they can defy gravity - forever. Or at least until Rupert leaves his post.
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