Our team sent a list of questions to Professor Stephen J. Farnsworth of Mary Washington College in Fredricksburg Virginia USA. We were grateful that a man such as Professor Farnsworth would spare time from his hectic schedule to answer us. Stephen J. Farnsworth, Instructor in Political Science, received a Ph.D. (1997) in government from Georgetown University. He received his M.A. (1993) in government from Georgetown University, after having received a B.A. (1990) in history from the University of Missouri, and a B.A. (1983) in government from Dartmouth College. Farnsworth has ten years experience as a journalist, including working as a national reporter in Washington, D.C. He has written numerous opinion columns for such publications as the New York Times and the Christian Science Monitor. His special interest in the media and politics includes the political impact of mass communication. The answers are in his words and we have not edited or changed any of the text.

.....What issues do you feel are important problems facing mass media now and in the future?

I think the centralization of the mainstream media in the hands of a shrinking number of corporations is a major concern. Corporate interests may overwhelm journalistic interests, particularly when a company's media business is only the small part of a total corporation's holdings.

Already, I fear that informing the public often takes second place in much of the mass media to entertaining the public. This trend is troubling because the less informed a citizenry, the worse a democracy works. Without vigorous competition, there is little pressure to put out a quality news product.

.....What international laws would you like to see enacted to ensure fair and accurate coverage of global events?

I do not think the countries of the world would agree to any effective system of international media laws or would respect such a system for long if such laws somewhow were in effect.

The best hope for fair and accurate news coverage is competition among a variety of news organizations. Such competition can do much to expose the errors of news organizations that are not fair and objective. If anything, the rise of worldwide satellite, cable and internet technology will make it harder for biased news organizations to hide (provided there is plenty of competition).

....How do you think cultural and social influences affected mass media? (Examples like women's issues, religions.)

The most important social/cultural change in American media in my lifetime has been the growing diversity of reporters and editors. While the news business still has a long way to go to ensure truly diverse newsrooms, the growing number of women and minorities in newspapers and on TV has meant that many important issues have been covered more aggressively (especially social issues like poverty, health care, unemployment and education, as well as a growing focus on the character of politicians). When journalism was largely a white, male fraternity, news coverage was generally more narrow.

....What courses would you encourage students in the communications field to take?

I think it is important for journalists to be good writers and good thinkers. Journalism courses by themselves aren't enough to prepare a student for a career in the media. Students should also take courses in areas that they find particularly interesting and would like to report on - be it political science, economics, the environment, whatever. Editors like people who have some expertise in some substantive field they will report on - and most people start out in local government, so political science and economics are probably two of the best fields to pair up with journalism training.

....How has the Internet super highway of information made teaching harder or easier?

Newspapers, magazines and other mainstream media are liable for what they report and so have a great financial incentive to be as honest as possible. Academic books and journals are generally subject to rigorous peer review. While the lack of outside policing is one of the most attractive things about the internet, I'm not sure everyone in cyberspace recognizes how unconstrained the internet is. My students sometimes think because they read it on the web it has to be true.