If no news is good news, then what's fake news? If you're producing it, it's good news too. And so for the past four years, the Bush Administration has been churning it out, in the form of "video news releases" designed to shoehorn the government's message seamlessly into TV newscasts. Last year, the Government Accountability Office deemed the practice "covert propaganda." But the Justice Department recently told federal agencies to ignore that ruling. Bob hashes out the difference between public information and propaganda with G.A.O. managing associate general counsel Susan Poling.
This week, in its first hearing on FOIA compliance in 13 years, the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approved the "Faster FOIA Act," a measure designed to reduce delays in the turnaround of public information. It's one of several new bills intended to improve the public's right to know. Could this be a sign that lawmakers on both sides of the aisle finally agree that the federal government has grown too opaque? Brooke speaks with GOP Senator John Cornyn, co-sponsor of two of the bills.
The more people come to rely on the Internet for news and information, the more we all wrestle with the question of what makes a journalist a journalist. In his new book, Reporting from Washington, U.S. Senate historian Donald Ritchie gives some historical perspective, demonstrating how technology has driven the changing definition of the White House correspondent. Bob and Ritchie discuss the credentialing process and the evolution of the capital's press coverage.
A few weeks ago, President Bush kicked off the annual game of political football known as the budget process. His $2.57 trillion spending proposal now goes to Congress, which will revise it with the help of the Congressional Budget Office. Meanwhile, the rest of us, including a small cadre of Washington reporters, will try to sift through the five-volume document and the politics surrounding it. CBO Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin tells Bob where the press is most likely to fumble.
In his second White House term, George W. Bush will be surrounded by new faces, and not just in his Cabinet. There will be changes in the White House press corps, most notably that of the Washington Post, which is being completely revamped. White House correspondent Dana Milbank joins Bob to reflect on his time in the press briefing room.
On Monday, the world learned that the United States would soon have a new representative in charge of diplomacy abroad. What's been the reaction to National Security Advisor Condoleeza Rice's ascension to Secretary of State? Brooke turns for answers to our trusty foreign media watcher UPI editor in chief Martin Walker.
And so Colin Powell won't be taking part in Bush Term Two. His legacy is uncertain, but while in office, he was by far the cabinet's most popular member. Sympathetic observers attribute Powell's positive ratings to his up-by-the-bootstraps bio, straight-talking manner, and air of loyalty. But might he have been more manipulative with the media than he is given credit for? Brooke examines the reality and representation of Colin Powell.
There's been plenty of finger-pointing within America's intelligence community in the wake of 9/11 and the lead-up to war in Iraq. But the many failures of the CIA are not only worrying. They're also rather shocking. And that's because they contradict everything that books, TV, and movies have led us to believe about the world of spying. NPR's Jim Zarroli reports on spies - real and imaginary.
