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'Global Fictions' And Their Authors

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Tuesday, April 22, 2008; Page A18

I take issue with Jim Hoagland's April 10 column, "Best-Selling Global Fictions," and his statement that "politicians exist to recast reality in their terms."

Our cynicism about politics has created a self-fulfilling prophecy: We expect candidates to lie and pander to get elected, and they turn around and do just that. To change this, the public needs to pay closer attention. If a candidate you voted for lies, call him or her on it. Promises will never be kept if we don't expect them to be kept.

Our system relies on the existence of a well-informed electorate, which looks to the press for its information. We shouldn't have to beg the media to focus on substantive issues. Mr. Hoagland seems to forget that while politicians may wish to change how we view reality, the media have much more control than politicians do over how reality is viewed.

The media decide what is important by choosing what to cover, what questions to ask and how much coverage each story will get.

ALYSON CHADWICK

Washington


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