The graph above shows references to the Ground Zero Mosque as compiled by Google News' timeline. Here is some analysis from a column at Salon:
It evolved into the national political obsession of the summer and, finally, into a midterm election issue. And then, just like that, it disappeared...
News of the proposed Islamic community center first broke in a front-page New York Times piece in December 2009, but it garnered very little attention. The attention it did receive -- including from the likes of Fox News -- was positive...
The first peak in the coverage came when a wave of national Republican figures weighed in. Rudy Giuliani, Newt Gingrich and Tim Pawlenty each took shots at the project and its organizers...
The second peak in coverage came in mid-August when President Obama weighed in at a press conference, citing religious freedom. Those comments gave political reporters an excuse to keep writing about the story for weeks.
But then, after a last gasp in October in the run-up to the election (including a few memorable anti-mosque campaign ads), the story all but disappeared. What changed? Well, on the ground, exactly nothing. The organizers had not changed their plans. Fundraising continued.
There can be no single explanation for why a news story of this magnitude disappears. But, given the timeline here, it seems likely that the electoral calendar played a role. National Republicans who used Park51 as a bludgeon against Democrats suddenly were less interested in talking about the project after the election...
Looking back now, it's pretty good evidence of a manufactured story when coverage spikes and then vanishes, even as nothing has fundamentally changed.
More at the link.
It's not gone yet, over 800 hits on google news this morning. Controversies can only keep boiling for so long. The situation isn't just an example of manufactured news but the general low quality of modern journalism across the board.
ReplyDeleteAgenda,political affiliation, corporate sponsorship and ratings govern what is news to far too large a degree.
Your new format looks nice but scrolling is very choppy.
ReplyDeleteOf course it was manufactured news. If people were truly concerned about desecration of Ground Zero, why weren't they up in arms over the 55,000 sq ft shopping center to be built ON the site. Plans include a connection to the subway which will include digging up rubble that, no doubt, contains the remains of many of the victims.
ReplyDeleteThe press and politicians have been silent on that one.
When I saw the chart, it made immediate sense. September 11 is a national emotional memory. It will operate like any personal tragic anniversary. We will always be most emotionally concerned about issues surrounding Ground Zero leading up to its anniversary.
ReplyDeleteA quick house poll showed that was everyone's gut explanation when presented with the chart.
Cui bono.
ReplyDeleteI always try to remember this with any scandal or sensational story. It's usually the opposite party.
Native New Yorker chiming in. Agreed that this was a totally manufactured controversy. The only thing that most New Yorkers I know objected to was the location...and nothing else, especially the politics of the "controversy". When you start regulating what kind of religious buildings can be built and where, you're treading on some very dangerous Constitutional and American ideals. Funny how that didn't get much mention.
ReplyDelete