MEDIA WON VICTORY, AND SO DID THE PUBLIC

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000403640004-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 9, 2012
• Sequence Number: 4
• Publication Date: February 21, 1985
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

ST Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/09: CIA-RDP90-00965R000403640004-4
C~? R r%F 16 1 USA TODAY ~~~~
21 February 1985
JACK C. LANDAU
An opposing view
Media won victory,
and so did the public
WASHINGTON - The reso-
lution of Gen. Ariel Sharon's li-
bel suit against Time and Gen.
William Westmoreland's suit
against CBS is good news for
the two news organizatons in-
volved - and for the vast read-
ing and viewing public served
by all the news media.
Both cases were showpiece
political attacks on the integri-
ty of two of the country's most
respected news organizations;
and both news organizations
won their court cases, although
in different ways.
Westmoreland withdrew his
case as evidence mounted that
CBS was correct when it said
he had participated in a plan to
mislead the public on U.S. mili-
tary progress in Vietnam.
The Sharon jury found that
Time - even with its famous
triple-check accuracy system
- could not avoid an error, but.
the error was unintentional.
We cannot have aggr ive,
independent news organiza-
tions reporting complicated
and controversial issues if ev-
ery word and every nuance
must in all instances always be
absoutely accurate and meticu-
lously balanced for "fairness."
The press is. like other insti-
tutions composed of people: No
individual or group of people
can always be perfect
Furthermore, even the most
knowledgeable experts and ex-
perienced reporters and edi-
tors can come to different con-
clusions when analyzing the
same news event, especially
news events arising from pro-
Jack C. Landau is executive
director of the Reporters Com-
mittee for Freedom of the
Press.
lix circumstances such as Viet-
nam and the Middle East.
We should be proud that our
citizens receive more informa-
tion about the society in which
they live and from a wider va-
riety of news sources than oth-
er people in the world - thou-
sands of newspapers, maga-
zines, radio and television
stations.
And we should be proud of a
system that produces so few
misstatements, considering the
volume and diversity of this
massive news delivery system.
Our vigorous and inquiring
press, acting as a surrogate for
both majority and minority
views, must have "breathing
space" to make an occasional
error, whether it is investigat-
ing Vietnam, the Middle East
or pay-offs in local gravel con-
tracts or zoning ordinances.
Evaluation of our news me-
dia should not be based on the
temporary emotions of occa-
sional celebrated libel cases.
That evaluation should pro-
duce an uncontested conclu-
sion: We must maintain the sys-
tem envisioned by the First
Amendment, wherein popular
and unpopular ideas can sour-
ish and be debated in the mar-
ketplace of public opinion -
rather than being intimidated ..
into silence by the fear of
heavy libel judgments.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/02/09: CIA-RDP90-00965R000403640004-4