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Media Critiques
Newspaper readers might think twice the next time they pick up the paper looking for information about the highest court in Texas because the media has not done an adequate job of informing their readers.
I researched articles in the Houston Chronicle, the Austin American-Statesman, and the Texas Observer in the last two years to determine if those media outlets informed the public on this important cog in Texas government.
Do you know who is on the Texas Supreme Court? Do you know how many justices serve on the court or how they are selected? Do you know what the Texas Supreme Court does compared to the Court of Criminal Appeals, which is the highest court in the state to handle criminal cases?
I found only four stories in two years, which is appalling and makes me wonder how the media could skip over the Texas Supreme Court.
The Houston Chronicle only published a few articles on the court. For example, the Chronicle merely cracks the surface on how the justices are selected. Houston’s leading newspaper completely overlooks the justices and what they do.
The headline in the Outlook Section on page two of the Sept. 9, 2004 edition reads: “Governor Rick Perry Appoints Wallace Jefferson.”
That is a useful headline. It answers two questions: it informs the reader who the justice is and how he is selected.
A second Houston Chronicle article concerning the Texas Supreme Court from Aug. 8, 2005, introduces readers of Don Willet, who Perry was expected to select to the Supreme Court.
Meanwhile, the only story I found from the Austin American-Statesman was when Perry selected Willet about two weeks later.
As for the Texas Observer, the only article in the past two years in the monthly magazine also focused on the new justice. The headline in political intelligence from Sept. 9, 2005, says, “Petty Virtues and Virtuous Employees.”
Unlike the coverage by Houston Chronicle and the Austin American-Statesman, the in-depth story in the Texas Observer questions Perry’s selection to the court . The magazine examines Willet’s political history and qualifications to be a justice.
A press release from the governor’s office proclaims in late August,“[Willett’s] appointment will allow the court to benefit not only from his unique combination of skills and expertise but also [from] a more diverse array of professional backgrounds.”
The Texas Observer has covered twice as many stories on schools in 2005 than it has on the court.
The Austin American Statesman published more articles on the Michael Jackson trial in a span of a couple of months than it did in a full year of covering the Texas Supreme Court.
One article states: “Michael Jackson fell to the ground as he tried to make his way through a throng of hundreds of fans outside London's Victoria Palace Theater, where he watched the stage version of the movie ‘Billy Elliot.’”
The Chronicle dives deep into the Michael Jackson trial, splashing its readers each day of the trial, but doesn’t even make a wave to report on recent trials and decisions that the Texas Supreme Court has made.
I think that the public’s ignorance is in the part the fault of the media. The Texas Supreme Court is the highest court in the state and deserves a lot more recognition. If the media does not start informing its readers better, the Houston Chronicle, The Austin American-Statesman and the Texas Observer will deserve to be slipping in sales and circulation.
© Copyright World Internet News 2006-07
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