If you look through recently published magazines for articles pertaining to National Security, the vast majority would fall under the column of an editorial, or the newer credential which requires even fewer credentials, a blog, generally a polarized and unmediated point of view, expressing solely the author’s opinion, often times without substantiation, but under the credible heading of a reputable magazine. In fact, one of the articles that I found was criticizing just this, Closing by describing the current media image of National Security officials as “barefooted, longhaired hippies”
The most coverage of national security, especially with ports or border crossings will be found in the more “newsy” such as Newsweek or Time. Occasionally, there is an interesting piece, sometimes highlighting progress, other times acting as a watchdog against an ignored security loophole or inefficient or corrupt agency. One recent article in Time discusses the tunnels spanning the US-Mexican border. Now, I mentioned this in a previous post linking it to popular culture in the 2009 movie “The Fast and Furious” but this is a real article (not a blog or an editorial) and discusses how they exist, whether in Mexico or Iran. With an article such as this in such a well-respected magazine, this is likely to increase global awareness, and could potentially make a difference. It is my opinion that this is one of the positive effects of this type of media, that it can be the catalyst to a positive solution. The author alluded to the government’s solutions, but leaves the reader off, implying that there is more that needs to be done. If only this wasn’t one of several thousand.
image: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm598969088/tt1013752
