| |
Blind Faith:
Just the facts, ma'am...
OF INTEREST
Are reporters becoming patsies in the eyes of the American people? They supposedly “report” the “facts.” But really, who are journalists reporting to these days? If you take a look behind the scenes, media proprietors seem to be the ones pulling the strings. Many people may not pay close enough attention to even notice. Reporters and news anchors, especially in light of the 2008 Presidential election, are blindly fed numbers, results, projected decisions, etc. to report to the rest of the world as "fact." Does anyone see a problem with this?
America, have we stopped in our busy lives to analyze what we hear on the television and read in the papers? Are we so crazily obsessed with breaking news and updates that may or may not be true, that we readily accept anything we hear or read as fact? What happened to objective journalism? Maybe 24-hour news has killed that. No wonder people have less faith in journalists these days.
On the contrary, maybe this is why citizen and alternative journalism has flooded the media recently.
If we the people would pay closer attention to the news and actually cross-reference these so-called "facts" we might surprise ourselves. If no watchdog exists for the media, anything can be declared or printed that is not…wait for it…fact! Maybe not, but how will we know unless we start double-checking reporters? We should not believe everything the media has to offer. Maybe Noam Chomsky wasn't so far off in his "Manufacturing Consent" theories. Maybe the media is controlled by commercial interests. This may sound pessimistic, but it could help people to better understand what needs to change if reporters are to be better reporters. After all, isn't the ultimate goal for us to receive the truth and facts – be it mainstream or citizen media?
The same goes for reporters. Journalists should be held accountable for what they report. Good ole' fact-checking is critical to have a solid journalism foundation.
I know this is America, home of the free, but freedom of speech needs to be monitored to a certain extent. I will be very specific here. Opinions and editorials should be separate from facts and news. E! Entertainment should be separate from CNN news. I am not saying entertainment reporters are allowed to get away with not reporting the facts. Rather, entertainment should be separate from hard news; it is not hard news. But anything that is told to the American people, regardless of whether it is entertainment or news, should be factual. What is the point of hearing rumors? Do we ever really grow up out of high school thinking?
Freedom of speech should never be taken away from the American people – as guaranteed by the First Amendment. There should absolutely be a free market of ideas. However, facts should be checked and then, only then, reported to the people.
The media should be analyzed and questioned about coverage as well. When it comes to the Presidential election, someone should do an analytical piece on the 2008 election coverage. Where do all the numbers and charts come from? The so-called "experts"? There are a million questions that can be asked.
Opinions should be left for the tabloids to devour. Comedians and entertainment hosts should not be allowed to host news shows like CNN. “The most trusted name in news” may no longer be their slogan. These entertainment hosts are spouting opinions as fact.
Journalists need to fact check. The people need to fact check. Watchdogs need to fact check. Fact. Or opinion? ¤ Erica