If the answer is yes, where is the line between being a good, ethical journalist and being too political?
Glancing at the #TrumpPressConference tag on twitter is almost too much to handle. Although President Trump made several false claims in the conference, the media is, in fact, fighting back.
Radio journalist Lewis Wallace wrote a blog post on the up-and-coming blogging website, Medium, titled "Objectivity is dead and I'm okay with it." He argues there is no such thing as true neutrality, and telling both sides of a story isn't always the most ethical thing to do. He writes:
I know what I think. What about you?
Bonus: My favorite night show host is John Oliver, because he doesn't go for the easy, low-hanging fruit. He'll dumb stuff down and sometimes oversimplify, but honestly, he makes me laugh in a way that most comedians can't. So as a sort of conclusion, I'll leave you with my favorite type of storytelling that I hope never goes away: the fun kind.
Glancing at the #TrumpPressConference tag on twitter is almost too much to handle. Although President Trump made several false claims in the conference, the media is, in fact, fighting back.
An NBC reporter fact-checked Trump live during the press conference after the president stated he had the largest margin of electoral votes since Reagan. After being corrected, however, Trump turned around and accused the media of spreading false information. This is a pretty clear-cut example of someone just doing their job; not being too political.President Trump is pressed on his claim about the size of his Electoral College win https://t.co/iFgJysHgrR pic.twitter.com/ilISf2ycyB— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) February 17, 2017
Radio journalist Lewis Wallace wrote a blog post on the up-and-coming blogging website, Medium, titled "Objectivity is dead and I'm okay with it." He argues there is no such thing as true neutrality, and telling both sides of a story isn't always the most ethical thing to do. He writes:
"Any journalist invested in factual reporting can no longer remain neutral...we can check our facts, tell the truth, and hold the line without pretending that there is no ethical basis to the work that we do."Shortly after that blog post, Wallace was fired. For asking questions about journalism ethics, minority representation and objectivity, a good journalist lost his job. Writing through his anger, he expresses one of my deepest concerns/anxieties about the journalism profession: must I really choose between journalism and activism?
I know what I think. What about you?
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Bonus: My favorite night show host is John Oliver, because he doesn't go for the easy, low-hanging fruit. He'll dumb stuff down and sometimes oversimplify, but honestly, he makes me laugh in a way that most comedians can't. So as a sort of conclusion, I'll leave you with my favorite type of storytelling that I hope never goes away: the fun kind.
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