--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The failures of the press have…" description: "\"The failures of the press have contributed immensely to the emergence of a talk-show nation, in which public discourse is reduced to ranting and raving..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/666/carl-bernstein-10988_agendas_the-failures-of-the-press-have-contribut_280646.jpg" --- # The failures of the press have contributed immensely to… ![“The failures of the press have contributed immensely to the emergence of a talk-show nation, in which public discourse is reduced to ranting and raving and posturing. We now have a mainstream press whose news agenda is increasingly influenced by this netherworld.” quote by Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/666/carl-bernstein-10988_agendas_the-failures-of-the-press-have-contribut_280646.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/666/carl-bernstein-10988_agendas_the-failures-of-the-press-have-contribut_280646.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/666/carl-bernstein-10988_agendas_the-failures-of-the-press-have-contribut_280646.jpg) > “The failures of the press have contributed immensely to the emergence of a talk-show nation, in which public discourse is reduced to ranting and raving and posturing. We now have a mainstream press whose news agenda is increasingly influenced by this netherworld.” [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The press has turned into a sensationalist talk-show format, reducing serious discourse to noise and manipulation. **In simple terms:** News has become entertainment, losing depth. Key Takeaway Demand higher journalistic standards. Themes media decay sensationalism public discourse talk-show culture manipulation Mood critical concerned Type analytical warning When to use this quote - journalism education - media literacy programs - regulatory reforms Key Concepts information overload political polarization trust erosion Questions to Reflect On - What role should audiences play in demanding quality? - How can journalists regain credibility? A Different Perspective The claim may overgeneralize quality journalism still exists. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Agendas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/agendas/) [Discourse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discourse/) [Emergence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emergence/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Journalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalism/) [Mainstream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mainstream/) [Mainstream Press](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mainstream-press-900244/) [Nation Public](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nation-public-2723242/) [Nations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nations/) [News](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/news/) [Posturing Mainstream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/posturing-mainstream-2723243/) [Presses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/presses/) [Public discourse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-discourse/) [Ranting and raving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ranting-and-raving/) [Shows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shows/) [Talk Nation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talk-nation-1131023/) [Talk shows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talk-shows/) ## Related quotes > [“A New Majority Low Income Students Now a Majority In the Nation’s Public Schools January, 2015 Click”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-marselle/a-new-majority-low-income-students-now-a-majority-in-the-nation-s/) [Terry Marselle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-marselle/) > [Our nation must engage with the rest of the world. But to be successful, we must listen. Our interaction with the world must be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dina-powell/our-nation-must-engage-with-the-rest-of-the-world-but-to-be/) [Dina Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dina-powell/) > [I got to have a TV show that really was the talk of the nation for a while there. So I'm a very lucky…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-cherry/i-got-to-have-a-tv-show-that-really-was-the-talk-of-the-nation-for-a/) [Marc Cherry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-cherry/) > [I want to talk to a nation, not to a select committee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pulitzer/i-want-to-talk-to-a-nation-not-to-a-select-committee/) [Joseph Pulitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pulitzer/) > [The mainstream press and television do a very soft job of covering the press, either as corporate entities or as news organizations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-schanberg/the-mainstream-press-and-television-do-a-very-soft-job-of-covering/) [Sydney Schanberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-schanberg/) > [Conservatives in the American heartland have long believed, with some justification, that they can't get a fair hearing in America's mainstream press, which they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katty-kay/conservatives-in-the-american-heartland-have-long-believed-with-some/) [Katty Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katty-kay/) > [The mainstream press was not aggressive enough after 9/11, was not aggressive enough in asking questions about a decision to go to war in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-baquet/the-mainstream-press-was-not-aggressive-enough-after-9-11-was-not/) [Dean Baquet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-baquet/) > [Where would we in Washington and we in America be without the Center? We would know much less about the workings of our Congress,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seymour-hersh/where-would-we-in-washington-and-we-in-america-be-without-the-center/) [Seymour Hersh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seymour-hersh/) > [The sense that I get is that every election cycle, the mainstream press devolves more and more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-kasparian/the-sense-that-i-get-is-that-every-election-cycle-the-mainstream/) [Ana Kasparian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-kasparian/) > [There is a long-standing tradition in the mainstream press of middle-of-the-road journalism that is objective and fair. I would hate to see that fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-heyward/there-is-a-long-standing-tradition-in-the-mainstream-press-of-middle/) [Andrew Heyward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-heyward/) > [Quietly, President Obama has done warrantless wire tapping. And it was hardly covered. I don't know if any of the mainstream press bothered to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cenk-uygur/quietly-president-obama-has-done-warrantless-wire-tapping-and-it-was/) [Cenk Uygur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cenk-uygur/) > [Vincent Lingiari, I solemnly hand to you these deeds as proof, in Australian law, that these lands belong to the Gurindji people and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gough-whitlam/vincent-lingiari-i-solemnly-hand-to-you-these-deeds-as-proof-in/) [Gough Whitlam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gough-whitlam/) > [I have a little bit of a temper, but it's ... a useless temper, ... It doesn't accomplish anything, generally. It's just a lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-gandolfini/i-have-a-little-bit-of-a-temper-but-it-s-a-useless-temper-it-doesn-t/) [James Gandolfini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-gandolfini/) > [If I were on the field, I'd want the manager sticking up for me. Sometimes players are dead wrong, ranting and raving, but you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-cox/if-i-were-on-the-field-i-d-want-the-manager-sticking-up-for-me/) [Bobby Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-cox/) > [Think of each wound as you would of a child who has been hurt by a friend. As long as that child is ranting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-nouwen/think-of-each-wound-as-you-would-of-a-child-who-has-been-hurt-by-a/) [Henri Nouwen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-nouwen/) ## More by Carl Bernstein > [I think all good reporting is the same thing - the best attainable version of the truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/i-think-all-good-reporting-is-the-same-thing-the-best-attainable/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [ The reality is that the media are probably the most powerful of all our institutions today and they, or rather we \[journalists\], too often… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/the-reality-is-that-the-media-are-probably-the-most-powerful-of-all/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [If you are a great news organization, you can't have the best obtainable version of the truth if your vision and your scale is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/if-you-are-a-great-news-organization-you-can-t-have-the-best/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [“The people of the United States are entitled to assume that their President is telling the truth. The pattern of misrepresentation and half-truths that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/the-people-of-the-united-states-are-entitled-to-assume-that-their/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [“The August 1 story had carried their joint byline; the day afterward, Woodward asked Sussman if Bernstein's name could appear with his on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/the-august-1-story-had-carried-their-joint-byline-the-day-afterward/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [The most important ethical issues and the most difficult ones are the human ones because a reporter has enormous power to hurt people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/the-most-important-ethical-issues-and-the-most-difficult-ones-are-the/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [There had always been black people in and out of our house, and from the outset I had been taught that for them life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/there-had-always-been-black-people-in-and-out-of-our-house-and-from/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [“The managing editor shared Bernstein's fondness for doping things out on the basis of sketchy information. At the same time, he was cautious about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/the-managing-editor-shared-bernstein-s-fondness-for-doping-things-out/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [Donald Trump is american neo-fascist. The word "neo" meaning "new", has a lot to do with it, a new kind of fascist in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/donald-trump-is-american-neo-fascist-the-word-neo-meaning-new-has-a/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [For the first time, the weird and the stupid and the coarse are becoming our cultural norms, even our cultural ideal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/for-the-first-time-the-weird-and-the-stupid-and-the-coarse-are/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [The Congress is a dysfunctional institution; it's broken. One of our three branches of government is broken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/the-congress-is-a-dysfunctional-institution-it-s-broken-one-of-our/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [“They walked across 15th Street to the Madison Hotel's Montpelier Room, an opulent French restaurant. Bradlee asked for a corner table, and began the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/they-walked-across-15th-street-to-the-madison-hotel-s-montpelier-room/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [“Rosenfeld runs the metropolitan staff, the Post's largest, like a football coach. He prods his players, letting them know that he has promised the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/rosenfeld-runs-the-metropolitan-staff-the-post-s-largest-like-a/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [“The story was solid. Howard Simons ordered the front page remade for the second edition. Bernstein was more shaken by all this than by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/the-story-was-solid-howard-simons-ordered-the-front-page-remade-for/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) > [There's no way to know the motives of another person totally, even a person that you know very well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-bernstein/there-s-no-way-to-know-the-motives-of-another-person-totally-even-a/) [Carl Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) [Explore all 62 Carl Bernstein quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-bernstein/) ## More Agendas quotes > [There's a dishonest tyranny in the liberal/progressive/socialist agenda that comes down and says 'we are here because we care about you; we want what's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/allen-west/there-s-a-dishonest-tyranny-in-the-liberal-progressive-socialist/) [Allen West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/allen-west/) > [There could be no more powerful argument against mixing religion and government than the success of independent African American churches in placing racial segregation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jacoby/there-could-be-no-more-powerful-argument-against-mixing-religion-and/) [Susan Jacoby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jacoby/) > [At home we didnt talk about religion. So gradually the question faded away by itself and disappeared from the agenda. When I was nineteen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergei-prokofiev/at-home-we-didnt-talk-about-religion-so-gradually-the-question-faded/) [Sergei Prokofiev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergei-prokofiev/) > [We have Internet now and people are not stupid. But it seems that some people are trying to push the same agenda of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bassem-youssef/we-have-internet-now-and-people-are-not-stupid-but-it-seems-that-some/) [Bassem Youssef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bassem-youssef/) > [The next thing you do today will be the most important thing on your agenda, because, after all, you're doing it next. Well, perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/the-next-thing-you-do-today-will-be-the-most-important-thing-on-your/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [In our system of government, the judicial and legislative branches have different roles. Judges are not politicians. Judges must decide cases, not champion causes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orrin-hatch/in-our-system-of-government-the-judicial-and-legislative-branches/) [Orrin Hatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orrin-hatch/) > [It's when someone has an agenda of their own for the record that it doesn't work for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alanis-morissette/it-s-when-someone-has-an-agenda-of-their-own-for-the-record-that-it/) [Alanis Morissette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alanis-morissette/) > [The problem with merely writing so that you can be understood is that the wrong people, in advancing their agendas, are only too ready…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-a-dembski/the-problem-with-merely-writing-so-that-you-can-be-understood-is-that/) [William A. 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