A pat on the back

I'd like to use this space to congratulate the news organizations for their coverage of the aftermath of hurricane Katrina. The focus has been put squarely on what really matters in this whole mess: the people who are affected by it. I have been inspired to every emotion by the stories I have seen and read. They haven't just been reporting the facts they know, telling the numbers and showing us press conferences. There has been true journalism done here, focusing on individuals rather than on the numbers. What is easier to identify with: an overhead shot of huge crowds at a stadium or the story of a family searching for a missing loved one? Stories like these force people to take action. I don't know why the maximum number of National Guardsmen weren't deployed to the area as soon as the hurricane struck, but I can guarantee the fact that the entire country saw that it needed to be done had some effect on the President deploying them. It also had a huge effect in inspiring record donations for disaster relief; more donations than the first ten days after the tsunami last Christmas or the first ten days after September 11, 2001. Still, there is more to be done. The people displaced by this hurricane will not be back home for a long time to come, and will probably need help for much of it. News media must stick with these people to let the country know what must be done, or else it will never happen. Also, there are many questions left to be answered about the hurricane that media attention could help bring to light. Why weren't the levies reinforced a long time ago? Why did it take so long to evacuate? And what more could we have done, what was done wrong? This tragedy has reinforced my belief that our news media is very powerful, and when run correctly very EMpowering for our democracy.