Not coincidentally, the Pentagon has been a cash cow customer for many Fortune 500 companies. Even news accounts of polls skew our attention in one direction. Journalists should insist on ferreting out malfeasance among elected officials and their appointees. However, it's much less common for newsrooms to encourage journalists to go after powerful corporations with similar zeal. The hazards are many.
Corporations can sue for libel.
And large corporate entities are run by people who tend to hobnob with media owners. And the owners can exercise those rights by hiring people who will hire journalists who don't rock the boat, who don't attack advertisers, who don't challenge the establishment. That's a form of censorship. For the most part, news media seem to be in denial about corporate power and its importance in our lives. Norman Solomon is a national commentator and media critic.