The editorial content of a newspaper may not necessarily be consistent with the kinds and nature of reporting. The Wall Street Journal has a relatively conservative editorial stance, but their news reporting is not necessarily influenced by that stance.

Editorials themselves can be newsworthy in terms of shaping events. The PBS program, “Words of War,” cites the example of editorials related to the Bush administration’s policy in initiating the Iraq War:

The ongoing battle over the proposed war broke out when The New York Times ran a story in July 2002 detailing an insider’s misgivings over secret plans for the invasion of Iraq and reached a fever pitch after Brent Scowcroft’s Wall Street Journal column criticized invasion plans.

Some believe the press was too deferential for too long. “Whenever you have a popular president, the news media are hesitant and often inhibited in terms of raising questions about what he says,” states Michael Massing, media critic and contributor to The Nation. On the other hand, Weekly Standard editor William Kristol claims that “we have had more of a debate about this than most of the major foreign policy choices that [administrations] have faced in recent years.” Many have pointed out that President Bush’s speech at the United Nations was at least in part a response to the press’ contribution to the debate.

The site also contains a video clip of Doyle McManus of the L.A. TIMES commenting on media perceptions of debate within the Bush administration, as well as examples of editorials related to preparations for other, previous wars.