What Happened to Journalism?
Image courtesy of Kaboompics on Pixabay
What Happened to Journalism?
When I was young, I remember my parents sitting down with a hot cup of coffee to enjoy the television news or the newspaper. In front of them were the facts about what was happening in our town, state, and nation, along with the rest of the world—all presented without bias so readers could make up their own minds.
Later, as a journalist, I covered politics from the municipal level up. I remember interviewing people on each side of an issue—all presenting convincing arguments. The joy was writing an article that represented all sides equally without bias, so readers could form their own opinions, but that’s all changed. Gone are the times of Walter Cronkite, objectively reading the facts.
All media outlets have an agenda
While covering politics, my editor suggested that I be an unenrolled voter, meaning no affiliation with a political party. I didn’t have one anyway—Dad was a Republican and Mom was a Democrat, so I grew up listening to both sides. My editor also taught me that true journalists don’t use adjectives because they paint a picture, which creates bias. But nowadays, all media outlets use adjectives because they have an agenda, and the result is reporting that inflames, causing neighbors, families, friends, and co-workers to turn on one another.
Some news outlets willingly show viewers everything and then put their spin on it, while others censor what viewers are allowed to see. Some hold back entire political speeches, with news anchors saying “they” would watch it and let viewers know if anything of value was said. What? They have no right to determine what the American people can or cannot see. Voters should be able to watch and make up their own minds. Voters are adults with no need for parental controls. Some people rationalized that it was okay because they didn’t care for the candidate, but what if it was a candidate they did like? It doesn’t matter which side of the fence you’re on, censorship is not okay.
Freedom of speech is a big deal
When I became editor-in-chief of a newspaper, people sent in letters to the editor, and one was so harsh that I lost sleep over whether to publish it. I had promised readers that the Editorial Page was theirs—the place where their voices could be heard, but the letter was so hurtful that it hurt me to read it. I disagreed with every single thing in that letter, but I decided to print it because he had a right to say how he felt. It wasn’t libelous or litigious, so I had no right to censor it. This country was born out of a need for freedoms and rights and as a journalist, I believed, and still do, in freedom of speech.
Does anyone enjoy the news anymore?
I decided it was time to get out of journalism after I sat on a debate panel for a state-level election. An editor from our flagship paper approached me minutes before the debate, insisting that I ask a question worded in a way that made it personal, hoping to spark a fight between two of the candidates. I had no intention of asking that question because it was wrong and felt unethical. Were we in the business of reporting the news, or creating news so we had a sensational headline for the front page? That same editor told me to tone down coverage of a candidate who visited the city often, so the other one, who never made a single appearance, couldn’t accuse us of unequal coverage and possibly sue. She said the facts didn’t matter because it all boiled down to perception. I disagreed. Voters had a right to know which candidate cared enough to show up. Politicians can say anything, but their actions speak the truth.
I don’t think anyone sits down to enjoy the news anymore because it’s a source of stress when you have no idea what the truth is. You’d have to watch four hours of news each day, all of it from different channels, to get any sense of balance and they bank on the fact that nobody has time for that. So, in the words of Denzel Washington, “If you don’t read the news you’re uninformed, and if you do read it, you’re misinformed.”
Until next time,
Jean AKA The Strategic Chicken - making life’s journey one strategic step at a time
Image courtesy of Kaboompics on Pixabay
