Thoughts on Dewey v, Lippmann

I strongly disagree with Lippmann that Democracy is best served by leaving the on the sidelines as “informed spectators”. Dewey’s positions that the public play a more central role in our democracy is easier to swallow. Dewey is correct that the public is not without it own set of problems. Chief among those problems is the issue of being informed. Lippmann believed that the professionals know best, but I do not believe that to be the case. A small part of the citizenry, or the public if you will, do work diligently to learn about those vying to our leaders. Unfortunately, a larger portion of the public often vote based on who would be more fun at a barbeque or some other silliness. I think that can be over come, albeit with great effort.
Newspapers, television, and other traditional media need to focus more on truth, and less on balance. An avoidance of the “cute stories” about candidates might help as well. New media are already providing more and more opportunities for involvement that traditional sources ever have. The issue for new media seems to be lack of trust by the public. I don’t know how to overcome that just yet.