Lately it seems that the one thing you can trust the American media to do is be untrustworthy when it comes to doing their job of real journalism. Recently NBC anchor Tom Brokaw acted as though the claims of Rear Admiral William L. Schachte Jr. about John Kerry could be treated as fact, even though others have disputed them.

Media Matters explains:

BROKAW: Just this past week, a man who was an admiral, Schachte, who was his [Kerry's] commander on the first mission which he went in for a Purple Heart, says, "He really doesn't deserve it, it was blowback from an RPG [rocket-propelled grenade]. I said he shouldn't get it, his commander at the time said he shouldn't get it, and it took three months to get it." Have you [Brinkley] looked into that?

In fact, Schachte's role in the December 2, 1968, mission leading to Kerry's first Purple Heart is the subject of considerable dispute. Responding to Brokaw's question, Brinkley noted that "the three men that were on the Boston Whaler with him [Kerry] all have the same story [that refutes Schachte's claim]. And that's a man named [Patrick] Runyon, [John] Kerry, and [William] Zaladonis." Indeed, as Media Matters for America has noted, mounting evidence contradicts Schachte's claim that he was the commander on Kerry's boat for the mission in question. Even Swift Boat Veterans for Truth's own website contradicts Schachte's claim that he was on the boat that night. And syndicated columnist, CNN Crossfire co-host, and Swift Boat Veterans for Truth backer Robert Novak has conceded that Runyon and Zaladonis were "certain that they alone were in the boat with Kerry and did not even know Schachte."

Few in the media have bothered to take the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth [sic] to task for their incredible claims. Instead, they treat every claim as if it had the exact same credibility. If someone were to come on the stage and announce that John Kerry and John Edwards molested goats behind the stage at their campaign stops, the national media would treat that as if it were completely credible and newsworthy, giving it plenty of attention during their demanding 24-hour news cycle.

Why? Because they have lost the ability to act like real journalists. They see their jobs as rushing out with the “story” as soon as possible, regardless of whether there is any real substance there to report on in the first place. That’s not journalism, that’s gossip by the back fence with a delusional neighbor who really should be on medication or in an institution.

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• 2004 Elections
• Election Polls
• George W. Bush
• John Kerry