| Sumario: | As the U.S. starts to consider electoral reforms intended to avoid another fiasco such as that in Florida after the November 2000 presidential election, a special challenge lies ahead for journalists. A story line is already evolving that new technology will solve the type of vote-counting problems that ruined the election. However, new technology seems to bring out the gullibility of even the best reporters. For example, Katharine Q. Seelye's front-page article in The New York Times, February 12, 2001, celebrates the wonders of computerized touch-screen voting in Riverside County, California; but it neglects to address messy details about recounts and contested elections and high-stakes manipulation. Given that former presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter are now leading a new National Commission on Federal Election Reform, and with multiple bills in Congress designed to enhance elections, such issues are due for a thorough public airing. It is time that the national media got up to speed on the issues.
|
|---|