| The 1973-1984 National News Council was a private, non-partisan response to the 1947 call by Robert Maynard Hutchins' Commission on Freedom of the Press for "an independent agency to appraise and report . . . upon the performance of the press." The council exemplified the social responsibility theory of the press and the long quest for mass media accountability. The News Council's archived records and a broad spectrum of secondary sources demonstrated its roots in Progressive ideals of journalism as a social expositor dedicated to empowering citizens. Spurring the initial demand for accountability were press sensationalism and outspoken opposition by many newspaper publishers to New Deal liberalism. But at the core of the debate was competition between the libertarian theory of the press (no external review but the marketplace) and the social responsibility theory (external review by neutrals). The News Council was birthed by philanthropies that adhered to social responsibility theory and held a strong-effects perspective. But major media shunned the National News Council, leading to its doom -- and to victory for libertarian press theory. |
