The Customer is Always Right

Page 1

Michael Alex

2009

www.teachlearnchange.org

The
Customer
is
Always
Right:
 Media
Coverage
of
the
2009
York
Strike
and
Decline
of
Democratic
Values
 
 Michael
Kristopher
Alex

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1


Michael Alex

2009

www.teachlearnchange.org

In
the
endless
debate
about
whether
the
mainstream
news
media
tend
to
exhibit
a
 left
or
right‐wing
bias,
a
widespread
assumption
has
been
accepted
as
received
 truth:
politics
and
ideological
commitments
are
enemies
of
high‐quality
journalism.
 However,
we
would
do
well
to
interrogate
this
belief.
Instead,
one
might
ask:
 compared
to
the
clear
erosion
in
popular
and
media
support
for
democratic
values,
 do
the
supposed
challenges
presented
by
political
bias
in
the
news
really
matter?
 Charges
of
political
bias
in
the
media
tend
to
be
made,
unsurprisingly,
most
 often
in
the
context
of
competing
and
highly
charged
political
claims
about
the
 substantive
content
of
news
stories
themselves.
When
an
issue
raises
political
 hackles
and
divides
people
along
oppositional
ideological
ramparts,
claims
that
 media
coverage
is
biased
one
way
or
the
other
–
or
frequently
both
simultaneously
–
 follow
in
short
order.

 This
was
amply
demonstrated
in
the
media
coverage
of
the
strike
that
led
to
 a
months‐long
labour
stalemate
and
cancellation
of
classes
at
York
University
this
 past
winter.
All
labour
actions
are
politically
contentious.
The
highly
contested
 nature
of
strikes
makes
them
a
potent
source
of
public
debate.
Because
strikes
so
 often
disrupt
business‐as‐usual
and
inconvenience
the
public,
they
tend
to
polarize
 supporters
and
opponents
in
short
order.

 When
a
strike,
like
this
one
by
teaching
assistants
and
contract
faculty
occurs
 within
the
perceived
privilege
of
the
ivory
tower,
when
tens
of
thousands
of
 students
feel
the
brunt
of
cancelled
classes,
when
a
strike
sets
records
for
duration,
 public
debate
can
quickly
descend
into
claims
and
counter‐claims
of
bias.
Nowhere

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2

2


Michael Alex

2009

www.teachlearnchange.org

are
such
charges
made
as
apparently
as
in
and
about
the
print
media.
This
is
no
 doubt
due
to
the
long
and
highly
partisan
history
of
daily
newspapers
in
Canada
 themselves.
The
Toronto
Star
is
a
pro‐labour
mouthpiece.
The
Globe
and
Post
 advocate
for
business
interests
that
are
hostile
to
unions.
These
tropes
have
become
 conventional
wisdom.

 Like
the
strike
itself,
early
coverage
of
the
strike
in
the
print
media
was
 largely
uneventful.
It
tended
to
focus
on
providing
updates
on
negotiation,
 highlighted
a
few
of
the
most
controversial
bargaining
issues,
or
provided
stock
 references
to
the
penchant
for
an
active
and
often
divisive
political
climate
at
York
 University
itself.
Indeed,
in
early
print
stories,
few
intelligent
questions
were
posed
 or
contextual
background
was
offered.
Missing
were
well‐researched
pieces
 providing
insight
into
either
the
strike
or
York’s
reputation
as
a
hotbed
of
faculty
 and
student
radicalism.
Instead,
reports
often
descended
to
the
level
of
lazy
rhetoric.
 The
strike
was
portrayed
more
as
a
nuisance
or
object
for
ridicule
than
a
problem
 deserving
serious
attention.
 For
most
of
the
strike’s
duration,
mostly
cursory
update‐style
coverage
made
 this
question
moot.
Stories
were
rarely
long
enough
to
exhibit
overt
bias.
Yet
as
the
 strike
dragged
on
and
media
attention
intensified
in
lock
step
with
public
outrage,
 major
media
outlets
often
debunked
the
myths
of
their
own
supposed
political
 leanings:
Carol
Goar
in
particular
in
the
Star
articulated
indignation
with
the
 strikers
by
reciting
a
laundry
list
of
free‐market
prescriptions
that
she
labeled
as
 “strong
medicine.”
Because,
she
reasoned,
“York
is
a
sick
school.”i
Meanwhile,
at
the

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3

3


Michael Alex

2009

www.teachlearnchange.org

Post,
Craig
Offman
upset
conventional
wisdom
by
providing
a
balanced
analysis
that
 critiqued
funding
shortfalls
and
argued
university
teachers
are
“crucial
to
Canada’s
 economic
future.”ii
 Despite
the
amount
of
energy
spent
and
ink
spilt
on
perpetual
debates
about
 bias,
they
ignore
a
more
problematic
reality:
the
shortcuts
we
so
often
take
in
 labeling
particular
papers
as
politically
biased
this
way
or
that
obscures
a
far
more
 trenchant
problem.
We
have
lost
sight
of
the
fundamental
values
that
underpin
our
 democracy.
Instead,
we
have
adopted
the
language
and
cadence
of
capitalism
at
the
 expense
of
a
meaningful
appreciation
of
and
interaction
with
each
other
as
 members
of
a
common
body
politic.
The
news
media,
one
of
the
few
institutions
 outside
of
public
education
that
can
teach
and
support
these
values
have
been
co‐ opted
in
what
has
arguably
amounted
to
an
unacknowledged
war
on
democracy.
As
 consideration
of
print
news
treatment
of
the
strike
at
York
University
makes
clear,
 just
because
something
is
ignored
or
misunderstood
does
not
make
it
any
less
 powerful
a
political
reality.
 Criticisms
of
editorial
spin
in
the
news
media
have
distracted
Canadian
 journalists
and
audiences
alike
from
the
reality
that,
while
so
many
have
fought
 partisan
battles,
democracy
itself
has
been
fundamentally
undermined
by
an
 individualistic,
consumer‐based
perspective
that
is
deeply
hostile
to
many
of
the
 values
inherent
in
responsible
citizenship:
a
commitment
to
equity
and
fairness,
 membership
and
participation
in
a
larger
public
community,
and
a
willingness
to
 mediate
one’s
own
selfish
interests
with
responsibility
to
and
for
one’s
neighbours.

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4

4


Michael Alex

2009

www.teachlearnchange.org

No
ideological
position
has
a
monopoly
on
these
commitments,
or
our
common
 failures
to
meet
them.

 Luckily,
in
Canada,
most
journalists
and
news
commentators
employ
 discretion
to
faithfully
serve
the
public
trust.
Yes,
they
portray
issues
in
ways
that
 subtly,
even
imperceptibly
shape
public
opinion.
In
doing
so,
they
inevitably
betray
 their
own
perspectives
and
impose
them
on
the
daily
news.
Editors
decide
what
 stories
run.
Reporters
decide
what
questions
to
ask
and
what
stories
to
chase
down.

 However
committed,
journalists
today
are
constrained
by
the
limitations
of
 their
own
work
environments
–
York
faculty
are
hardly
the
only
group
coping
with
 the
realities
of
misplaced
priorities
and
the
harsh
realities
of
a
free‐market
 paradigm
that
is
too
often
unsympathetic
to
the
costs
associated
with
paying
the
 bills
for
democracy.
Instead,
high
quality
public
education
and
an
adequately
funded
 news
media
have
been
reduced
to
frills
sentenced
to
death
by
a
thousand
cuts.
In
 such
an
atmosphere
–
where
journalists
are
squeezed
to
meet
the
demand
of
a
 relentless
twenty‐four
hour
news
cycle
with
fewer
and
fewer
resources
–
that
any
 collective
labour
action
would
be
given
a
chilly
reception
should
not
surprise.
 Also,
recent
changes
in
our
news
landscape
have
made
the
news
media
that
 much
more
vital.
In
the
context
of
a
few
homogenized
media
conglomerates
 controlling
overwhelming
scope
to
produce
news,
the
substance
and
tone
of
 coverage
does
much
to
shape
the
tone
of
political
debates
at
dinner
tables
and
at
 water
coolers
across
the
country.
In
a
demographically
diverse
and
geographically
 dispersed
country
like
Canada,
the
ability
to
provide
a
coherent
national
story
that

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5

5


Michael Alex

2009

www.teachlearnchange.org

unifies
public
attention
is
profoundly
powerful.
This
is
more
rather
than
less
the
 case
given
the
specialization
and
fragmentation
that
has
accompanied
the
 innovations
of
Internet
news
delivery
and
the
endless
diversions
of
the
blogosphere.
 Print
media
coverage
of
the
York
strike
bore
this
out.
As
the
strike
wore
on,
 values
antithetical
to
democratic
society
were
evident
throughout
news
coverage.
 Increasingly,
we
have
reduced
education
to
mere
accreditation.
Tuition
is
thought
to
 buy
papers
that
are
proofs
of
purchase
rather
than
symbols
of
research
or
 reflection.
Students
are
portrayed
as
and
begin
to
act
like
consumers,
not
learners.
 Parents
fret
about
the
bills
they
must
pay
and
the
failure
to
get
satisfaction
for
 services
rendered.
In
the
coverage
of
the
York
strike,
these
corrupted
values
took
 the
form
of
populist
anger,
one
that
was
as
intense
as
it
was
shallow
and
poorly
 informed.
Media
coverage
tended
to
focus
on
controversy
since
anger
and
 dissatisfaction
sell
better
than
depth
or
nuance.

 Moreover,
by
focusing
on
particular
individual
victims
of
the
strike
(and
 there
were
many
people
who
suffered,
including
the
strikers,
many
whom
were
 themselves
graduate
students),
the
press
tended
to
support
simplistic
narratives
 about
the
conflict.
Rather
than
considering
the
growth
of
class
sizes,
the
reduction
of
 well‐supported
faculty
or
cuts
to
post‐secondary
funding
that
coincided
with
a
 decade‐long
spike
in
enrolment,
more
colourful
stories
were
concocted.
These
 posed
specialized
academic
work
that
is
increasingly
done
by
contract
employees
 who
enjoy
little
job
security
as
an
easy
life.
Union
members
were
simultaneously
 lazy
and
politically
radical
as
they
pushed
for
more
benefits
while
the
economy

Do not use or publish without permission

6

6


Michael Alex

2009

www.teachlearnchange.org

around
them
tanked.
Critics
pointed
to
their
unreasonable
demands,
accusing
them
 of
pursuing
an
agenda
of
greed
on
backs
of
suffering
students
and
their
hard
 working
families.
Thus,
the
press
largely
provided
an
outlet
for
a
culture
of
 complaint.
From
reading
most
media
coverage
of
the
strike,
one
might
have
 wondered
why
students
would
bother
attending
university
at
all
given
the
lack
of
 respect
the
general
public
and
most
commentators
seemingly
had
for
higher
 education
or
the
relative
value
of
those
who
work
to
provide
it.
 Nowhere
are
these
priorities
clearer
than
in
the
discussion
boards
for
online
 commentary
that
now
accompany
most
web‐based
news
stories.
Public
debate
is
of
 course
only
as
informed
as
its
participants.
Since
only
a
small
minority
of
 commentators
have
a
direct
connection
to
particular
news
stories
being
discussed,
 online
rants
are,
in
turn,
a
reflection
of
the
relative
of
quality
of
mainstream
press
 coverage
itself.
When
stories
recycle
old
news,
treat
important
matters
of
public
 policy
as
sport,
reduce
complex
labour
negotiations
to
antagonistic
he‐said,
she‐said
 battles,
fail
to
give
needed
context
to
inform
readers
and,
most
damningly,
peddle
 myths
and
anger
rather
than
elevating
the
level
of
discussion,
democratic
discourse
 as
a
whole
suffers.
If
the
discussion
of
the
York
strike
on
the
newspaper
websites
is
 any
indication,
we
are
scraping
a
very
low
point
in
the
history
of
public
discourse
 indeed.
 Our
overweening
focus
on
the
individual,
the
consumer
knows
no
ideological
 boundaries,
like
a
pathogen,
it
has
spread
throughout
all
of
the
mainstream
press
 with
little
regard
for
particular
partisan
concern.
It
has
infected
the
very
core
of
the

Do not use or publish without permission

7

7


Michael Alex

2009

www.teachlearnchange.org

body
politic.
Addressing
ourselves
to
fighting
this
infection
of
democratic
principles
 should
be
the
political
project
to
which
the
news
media
direct
their
attention
lest
 they
further
amplify
and
compound
this
deeply
unhealthy
habit.
It
is
no
coincidence
 that
a
me‐first,
the‐customer‐is‐always‐right
mantra
holds
a
dominant,
even
 unquestioned
position
in
public
consciousness.
The
public
needs
to
be
taught
the
 value
of
education
and
democracy.
The
media
can
be
one
of
the
most
effective
 teachers
of
these
lessons.
 At
the
strike’s
conclusion,
one
that
was
only
achieved
through
a
legislated
 back‐to‐work
order,
the
news
media
changed
the
channel
as
quickly
as
so
many
of
 the
previously
outraged
commentators
on
their
message
boards.
Only
a
handful
of
 postscripts
on
the
strike
were
run.
Though
dire
warnings
about
the
lasting
effects
 the
strike
would
have
on
York
were
published,
little
new
context
was
offered.
No
 stories
ran
on
the
premier’s
suggestion
that
a
committee
be
struck
to
avoid
such
 disputes
in
the
future.
Little
mention
was
made
of
the
systemic
problems
that
 underwrote
the
strike
conflict:
funding
shortfalls,
growing
dependence
on
non‐ tenured
faculty
to
teach
university
courses,
deteriorating
standards
of
quality
 education
in
university
classrooms
far
from
the
halls
of
York,
now
slowly
lumbering
 into
action.
Instead,
the
Star
smirked
at
York’s
efforts
to
recover:
“Flunking
out?
 York
U.
offers
a
free
do‐over.”iii
 Now
more
than
ever,
in
an
age
of
declining
news
readership
and
anemic
 rates
of
democratic
participation,
we
need
a
vigorously
engaged
media.
If
the
main
 source
of
information
in
a
society
is
beholden
to
economic
values
rather
than

Do not use or publish without permission

8

8


Michael Alex

2009

www.teachlearnchange.org

democratic
objectives,
attention
spans
narrow,
citizens
become
stakeholders,
and
 equity
is
reduced
to
a
mere
commodity
for
exchange
rather
than
a
statement
of
 social
value.
 Only
a
commitment
to
delivering
news
that
skirts
hollow
debates
about
 partisanship
and
instead
focuses
on
a
critical
defense
against
narcissistic
 individualism
can
provide
the
necessary
antidote
to
these
bad
habits
of
mind
that
 have
overtaken
our
public
discourse.
That
the
customer
is
always
right
is
rarely
 questioned.
If,
however,
we
elevate
the
customer
to
a
position
exalted
above
that
of
 citizen,
who
wins
or
loses
in
a
particular
labour
dispute
is
of
minor
importance.
 York
has
been
much
maligned
for
enduring
three
strikes
in
slightly
more
than
a
 decade.
However,
if
we
do
not
rescue
our
news
media
from
the
grasp
of
a
mindset
 that
is
hostile
democracy,
it
will
be
the
Canadian
people
who
will
have
struck
out.

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9

9


Michael Alex

2009

www.teachlearnchange.org

Notes:
 























































 i
Carol
Goar.
“Strike
at
York
leaves
deep
wounds.”
Toronto
Star.
January
28,
2009.

http://www.thestar.com/comment/article/578266
 
 ii
Craig
Offman.
“Universities
facing
labour
time
bomb.”
National
Post.
January
24,
 2009.
http://www.financialpost.com/news‐sectors/story.html?id=1213174
 
 iii
Louise
Brown.
“Flunking
out?
York
U.
offers
a
free
do‐over.”
Toronto
Star.
January
 28,
2009.
http://www.thestar.com/News/GTA/article/585589

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10

10


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