The Medias Objectivity Fetish - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

1 / 18
About This Presentation
Title:

The Medias Objectivity Fetish

Description:

... journos view Wallace? ... `Mike Wallace on patrol with the North Kosanese, cameras ... Michelle Malkin, American Journalism's True Colors, Oct 3, 2001, www. ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

Number of Views:105
Avg rating:3.0/5.0
Slides: 19
Provided by: dougn5
Category:

less

Transcript and Presenter's Notes

Title: The Medias Objectivity Fetish


1
The Medias Objectivity Fetish
  • When does the story end and real life begin?

Doug Nairne JSMC6002 Feb. 25, 2003
2
Two perspectives on war.
As a journalist
As a soldier
Covered wars in Bosnia (1994) Rwanda (1995)
Central America (1998)
Peacekeeping in Croatia, 1992
3
Mike Wallace
  • You are only there to cover a story.
  • You have no higher duty to your country or to
    your fellow man.
  • Your only role is to document events.
  • You are not a human, you are a reporter.

4
Peter Jennings
  • You should warn the Americans.
  • "I do not think that I could bring myself to
    participate in that act. That's purely personal,
    and other reporters might have a different
    reaction."
  • On second thought, said he agreed with Wallace

5
What were they really talking about?
  • The need to be objective.
  • A journalist should cover the story, not be part
    of the story.
  • Or perhaps Wallace was just mugging for the
    cameras and putting on a show for the audience.
  • We are supposed to be accountable to our readers
    and viewers, but would most people agree with
    Wallace?

6
Wallace was wrong.
  • The ethic he was defending was sound, the
    situation he applied it to was not.
  • Ethics are guidelines, not absolutes. The
    situation dictates the right thing to do.
  • Whose values are we protecting? Our communitys?
    Or has the medias self-obsession alienated us
    from what our readers want?

7
If you agree will Wallace, consider these
situations
  • You are covering a bus accident and arrive on
    the scene before the emergency medical crews get
    there.
  • What do you go for first Your first aid kit or
    your camera?
  • Do you help the injured or interview them?
  • What kind of legal and ethical issues arise if
    someone dies when you could have saved them?

8
Consider these situations
  • You are covering an event on a boat and you see a
    small child fall overboard.
  • Do you jump in the water to save them?
  • Do you wait and see if someone else jumps in and
    get a great hero story?
  • Do you immediately run over to the parents and
    get the exclusive on how they feel about their
    about-to-be drowned child?

9
Consider these situations
  • You find out that terrorists are planning to
    bomb the Bank of China building in one hour.
  • Do you warn the police?
  • Do you sell your BoC stock?
  • Do you get your cameras in position to cover the
    explosion?
  • What if your wife or husband works in the
    building?

10
There is a common theme.
  • In each of these cases a line is crossed where
    our role changes from dispassionate observer to
    being a citizen. Reasonable people will see a
    clear right and wrong answer.
  • We cannot completely separate ourselves from our
    communities and hope to produce journalism that
    reflects them.

11
Can we ever completely separate ourselves from
the story?
  • Heisenberg effect the act of observing the
    system causes the system to change. Camera and
    reporters will cause people to change their
    behaviour.
  • We often influence the story just by being there
    so the idea that we can ever just be observers is
    false.

12
How do other journos view Wallace?
  • These TV anchors could use another visit to
    Ground Zero to contemplate whether the killers
    deserve journalistic neutrality. -- Brent
    Bozell, president, Media Research Centre.
  • In times of war, journalists are not supposed to
    be neutral. They are supposed to be objective.
    They are supposed to cover developments fairly
    and accurately, convey information honestly, and
    report what is relevant. -- Jeff Jacoby, Boston
    Globe Columnist

13
  • "We are loath to keep anything from our readers
    but when people's lives are at stake, what's to
    debate? You wait. -- Walter Lundy of the St.
    Paul Pioneer Press.
  • Mike Wallace on patrol with the North
    Kosanese, cameras rolling while his countrymen
    are gunned down, recognizing no "higher duty" to
    interfere in any way and offering no rationale
    beyond "I'm with the press" - this is a nice
    symbol for what Americans hate about their media
    establishment in our age. James Fallows,
    Breaking the News, How the Media Undermine
    American Democracy.

14
  • There is an ethical obligation to make sure
    you are not withholding certain information that
    could, if not revealed or refused to authorities,
    cause great harm to others. Bob Steele,
    director of the ethics program at the Poynter
    Institute.

15
A more reasonable approach.
  • Responsible journalism recognizes that reporters
    are people first. We have moral obligations
    beyond our craft.
  • Our readers expect us to reflect their values as
    well as our own.
  • Being objective when reporting war is not the
    same as being neutral.

16
Accomplished war correspondents Ernie Pyle
  • The writing that earned Ernie Pyle a Pulitzer
    Prize in 1944 would have gotten him fired today.
    There will be no 21st century Ernie Pyles in our
    war on terrorism because modern journalists
    wouldn't be caught dead in a foxhole, wearing a
    military uniform, bravely recording and
    communicating the hopes, fears, dreams, anger and
    pride of the American soldier. Oh, no. That might
    give -- heaven forbid -- the wrong impression.
    -- Michelle Malkin, American Journalisms True
    Colors, Oct 3, 2001, www.TownHall.com

17
Wallace typified what people hate about the media.
  • Moral arrogance.
  • Uncaring and insensitive.
  • Lack of respect for others, even those involved
    in personal tragedy.
  • Insults viewer intelligence.
  • Competition more important than people or truth.

18
(No Transcript)
Write a Comment
User Comments (0)
About PowerShow.com