Is everything that we read in print true, accurate and unbiased? Do newspapers have a responsibility to be objective to their readers? These questions and more need to be discussed in any treatise about modern newspapers.
Reporters have to rely on others for truth and accuracy, and we should realize that the source or witness is usually taken at his or her word. When research is called for, it is the newspaper’s responsibility to find the facts for its readers.
The only place in a newspaper for its opinions and a statement of position should be the editorial section. These pages provide a forum which enables the paper’s editor(s) to express their stand on the various social issues. Every other article, story and report should be completely objective. However, many people feel that our newspapers have become politically or ideologically biased. Such terms as the “liberal eastern press” or the “Republican bent” of rural and suburban newspapers have been around for years.
The best way to use a newspaper and get as much accuracy out of it as possible is to vary your news sources. Read two or more different papers, news magazines, and utilize other media for the “total picture.” Keep in mind that a newspaper is a commercial business whose first reponsibility is to make a profit for its stockholders. For this reason they may take steps that appeal to their advertising clients, readership customers, and political benefactors, such as not stepping on too many toes.
A changing society reflects itself in changing newspaper tastes. Many people no longer have the time to read long, detailed articles and editorials. They have come to rely on short news capsules, illustrations, charts and other graphics to provide news at a glance.
The U.S.A. TODAY newspaper has been quick to capitalize on this “fast news” feed to people, the way fast food has changed our eating habits. With modern technology such as VCRs, newspapers are competing for people’s information intake times more than ever. They no longer have to be home for the six o’clock news, but can record and watch anytime—and zap the commercials. However, by forcing the news into brief columns, much detail is often left out. Newspapers today seem to be concentrating on entertaining as much (if not more) as informing. I am often left “hungry for more” after reading a news story or watching a TV account. Today, an informed person needs more than one source of news.
The Press and Its Reponsibilities
Case in Point: China, Spring, 1989
People around the world watched and read about the struggle for political and social change in Beijing. Day after day for nearly seven weeks the story was brought into our homes, first with hope then shock and despair. The press, both print and electronic, gave us hundreds of scenes, interviews, stories and commentary.
The Chinese students felt that they were in the hands of the Western press and that the military would not attack with the whole world watching. However, when it became obvious that the students miscalculated the resolve of the government not to make concessions, it was too late.
The reporters and photographers who were the students’ saviors and benefactors only days before, now saw their film and newsprint turned against the students. With Chinese television flashing video film and photographs that were so easily available, the government used the press to roundup hundreds of students who were arrested, jailed and hanged.
A very valuable lesson about the press was learned from the Chinese experience. People everywhere, especially in totalitarian countries, will be more careful in their dealings with the press. It will be more difficult to find people willing to be on camera, give true accounts, or use their real name. Hopefully, in the future the press will assume a greater role in protecting the safety of the people who are left to fend for themselves.