Though the nation’s newspapers are hardly faultless, Bernstein said television news had been taken over by an “idiot culture” that spends more time chasing celebrities than explaining life-changing events….

Bernstein challenged the nation’s media to rediscover its obligations to inform the public and to promote the “public good” rather than agendas driven by political spite. He assured the audience that in Washington, D.C., factions within the Republican and Democratic parties spent considerably more time and energy hating each other than fighting terrorism.

Watergate journalist says media losing public’s trust