The truth is out there

The primary purpose of journalism is to provide citizens with the information they need to be free and self-governing.

I took Journalism this semester, and the above quote from the textbook we used (“The Elements of Journalism” by Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel) was the first thing we were taught. Journalism is not just a recount of incidents, but a tool meant for educating and informing citizens.

In order to do so, the journalist must make sure that what they’re writing about is the truth, and this is done through a process of verification. Journalists also have the obligation to exercise their personal conscience. Keeping things ethical is not just a moral responsibility, but also helps maintain harmony in society.

Then one day, the Internet showed up, and “journalists” have been popping up all over the web. And some of these people cannot write to save their lives.

But more importantly, they make a mockery of the journalistic practice. For instance, the fundamental element of ensuring truth in their articles is, unfortunately, lost when they do not care to verify or do not have the means to do so. This results in the public becoming misled and misinformed. Also, unethical “journalists” who post information without first considering its effects may end up hurting others.

However, citizen journalism is not all bad. Its advantage is in constantly having eyes and ears on the ground, allowing for real time reports from anywhere and everywhere. Twitter, especially, is a key component in this phenomenon. People can now upload posts, pictures, and videos while an event is happening, which is much faster than waiting for journalists to arrive at the scene.

Another benefit of citizen journalism is as a check on mainstream media. While journalists often do their best to uncover a story in its entirety before publishing it, citizen journalists can offer their own accounts of events, correct errors, or provide new facts.

The classic role of a journalist was that of a gatekeeper, deciding what the public should know. Now that we have the Internet, some people believe that journalists are no longer necessary, since we have access to information ourselves. While it is true that journalists play a different role now, writing them off completely is not wise. At the end of the day, the journalist’s primary function is in verifying truth, which still holds even today.