"A cynical school of thought would have us believe that journalists are exploiters of their sources, that they ultimately violate their confidence for the sake of an interesting story. The writers here have a different reputation . . . . They honor the privilege of access by rendering the lives of their subjects with fairness, honesty, thoroughness and courtesy."
~Clark & Scanlan, page 165
I guess this goes to show that, like with everything else, there are good journalists and bad journalists in this respect. It all comes down to ethics. If journalists place their own personal ambitions above all else, then they may very well fall under the stereotype the cynical school of thought describes. If journalists hold moral and ethical standards above everything else, then they won’t. One just has to find a good balance between good ethics and good reporting.
Comments (2)
I also used the first quotation in my blog. Journalists (well, people in general, but for now, let's just stick to journalists) sometimes forget that there is a right and a wrong. Exposing a person's hidden vices when that person was trusting you to write a simple profile piece? A liiiitle wrong.
Though, you're right, Jennifer. If a journalist maintains high ethical standards, he/she can still be successful and ambitious.
Posted by Josie Rush | September 1, 2009 4:04 PM
Posted on September 1, 2009 16:04
I like this blog entry. If a news reporter believes their thoughts are better and should come first, then the news report will contain a bias that will cause them to fall into the cynical category. If a news reporter puts their thoughts second, then the report will hold truth and will be a secular source of information based on events instead of opinions. Good job!
Posted by Derek Tickle | September 1, 2009 7:48 PM
Posted on September 1, 2009 19:48