Stories with Holes

In the last several days, the Wall Street financial crisis has gone from bad to worse, and it has become apparent that economic interests must start to take precedence over the state of the election polls.

Both the Bush administration and the presidential hopefuls sort through numbers and talk about borrowing foreign dollars, but what no one talks about or attempts to explain is the true effect that the economy crisis will have on the average American. Rather than stating solid facts, they rely on predictable, age-old statements. The Democrats criticize the Republicans for borrowing a quick fix, claiming that the Democratic party would rather fold in on itself than raise the taxes of the individuals. The Republicans criticize the Democrats for not discussing and sticking to a clear economical plan. 

According to cnn.com, McCain announced today that he is taking a break from the campaign trail in an effort to aid in economic relief efforts. However, the story, as well as the site in general, lacks specific details about the possible consequences of the situation. Our media devotes a great deal space to pondering the sexual orientations of our celebrities, yet invests no visible time or space to explaining the complicated entanglement of our country's financial problems to the less-invested, "average" citizen.

The media has failed in its comprehensive coverage of the country's current financial situation. Until Americans are given a clearer picture of U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's 700 billion dollar bailout plan, until the plummet of the value of the dollar is explained in more detail, and until the ordinary citizen is given more information about how these economic recovery strategies will affect their taxes, travel plans, and everyday life, the "average American" will remain just that: an uninformed citizen who is ill prepared to make a decision in November.