The Clinton Sex Scandal

The Clinton Sex Scandal

Rare is a person that crosses the path of the White House without some

emotion of envy or awe. This building epitomizes world leadership and

unprecedented power. This renowned leadership may be the only association

made by certain countries, while in the United States many see an other

significance: Watergate, Whitewater, Kennedy's brutal and mysterious

assassination, and today, Clinton's "zippergate" scandal. When the

President of the United States takes oath, he gives up a part of his life.

His private life becomes the public's life, and they feel the right to know

what happens behind the Oval Office. Now the Presidency must battle against

Newspaper journalists, radio personalities, televised news reports and now,

even more menacing: the Internet.

Presidents who are constantly reminded of their power and prestigious rank,

become exasperated because they cannot control the news media, even though

they can to a large degree set the news agenda. Media has expanded in its

presence, becoming widespread on the Internet, perhaps monopolizing the

domain, by becoming more powerful and more used than written, televised or

radio journalism. The Presidents' inability to control the press exposes

their vulnerability and tends to question the actual power they can

actually exert. All presidents, at some time or another, became frustrated

at what they perceived as unfair treatment by the press, even while

acknowledging its vital function in a free society, and many presidents

have been a part of a scandal.

The current Presidential scandal with Monica Lewinsky had swept the Nation

overnight. It seems quite impossible to know just how it will all turn out,

and unfair to even speculate, but the media certainly seems to think they

possess that right. It is obvious that this story has changed the face of

journalism, has put online media on the map in a major way, and has made

life more difficult for newspapers forever.

First, let's take a look at how this story developed and how it acted on

the Internet. David Noack of E&P in his article "Web's Big Role in Sex

Controversy" does a great job of detailing the twisting path this tale took

from rumor to investigation to publication, and how the Internet played a

key part. Noack points out in his article that the "Clinton/Lewinsky"

scandal has drastically changed online media. He writes:

"A year ago, most newspapers and news magazines adhered to the hard rule

that they would not stoop themselves by putting breaking news on their Web

sites before it appeared in their print editions. But a rapidly-growing

public demand for almost "instant" Web coverage of breaking national news

stories has forced even the largest newspapers and magazines— like the

Washington Post and Newsweek—to abandon the old rule."

"Out with the old, in with the new." It is easy to think breaking stories

online could dilute journalists' on-paper presence; now many have realized

that online media puts all journalists on equal footing with radio and TV.

So who drove this change, pushing away the status quo? Matt Drudge, author

of "The Drudge Report". It is still