That same scenario and question applies to Haditha. It was not just the Marines who stood accused, but all of our troops were painted and smeared by a very wide media brush. Words and phrases such as "massacre," "war criminals," "mercenaries" and "in cold blood," covered our front pages and evening newscasts for weeks. Who in that same media has reported the dropped or reduced charges against those Marines? Where is the balance in that coverage?

Why have so many in the media been reluctant to report — as liberal, Democratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has finally admitted — that the surge is working and our troops are succeeding. Where are the positive news stories? If the war no longer fits the negative narrative of some in the media, does it just cease to exist?

In the United States, journalism is still a noble calling that schools the serious-minded in the collecting of facts, writing news stories that reflect those facts and editing that material in a way that the truth is never compromised. Our newspapers and networks clearly do have consummate professionals who believe they have an obligation to give readers and viewers honest, unvarnished news. That said, their voices often seem muted by colleagues who choose to cheapen the profession to advance a partisan agenda.

The Fourth Estate does have tremendous and almost unchecked power — for now. If its New Year's resolution is not to crack down on those who undermine and debase the news business, then Americans will continue to flee it in search of alternatives.

The new year will go a long way toward telling that story.