Editor:

Jed Layton’s article (“Campaigns get nasty: Students say they’re sick of rumors,” Sept. 15) is framed in such a way that values an arbitrary “balance” over factual reporting. By attributing the accusations that the McCain campaign has been consistently lying in its ads and stump speeches to an Obama spokesperson, Layton frames the disagreement as merely a difference of opinions between two campaigns. But this corruption of journalism actually obstructs the nobler value of objectivity.

Is the McCain campaign lying? This is a question that can be answered by examining actual facts, yet Layton and too many other journalists do not in their reports. Yes, the McCain campaign has been intentionally lying about everything from Gov. Sarah Palin’s record on earmarks to Sen. Barack Obama’s support for legislation to stamp out sexual predators. Sen. John McCain has brought negative campaigning to a new low, yet the public perception that he’s no worse than Obama will persist as long as journalists ignore their duties.

Trevor Perry
Junior, Speech and Hearing Science