ml662610@ohio.edu
In today's society, does objectivity in the news really exist? Can journalists remain objective while reporting on a story? The challenge to remain objective in the media happens everyday. In 1996, the struggle was so real the Society of Professional Journalists revised its Code of Ethics by removing the term "objectivity."
Objectivity in action
In 2010, MSNBC host Keith Olbermann was publicly suspended from the network after making political contributions to the democratic party. Olbermann received much criticism for his lack of objectivity from journalist Ted Koppel. Koppel made a strong argument about why there is a greater demand for objectivity in the news than ever before.
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| online.wsj.com |
No longer are people only gathering news from newspapers and news stations. Today, Americans crave information and news, and are willing to look to other sources. It feels like relationships between the media and consumers are more vulnerable than ever.
Seven Principles of Media Objectivity
When times get difficult, ethic codes and the seven principles of media objectivity from Honest Reporting are great things to keep in mind when avoiding bias and objectivity in the media.
1. Misleading definitions and terminology: The media can lack objectivity when presenting terms and definitions as accepted fact.
2. Imbalanced reporting: Journalists create bias by reporting only one side of the story
3. Opinions disguised as news: Avoid using adjectives and adverbs in news stories, and make opinions and sources internationally clear.
4. Lack of context: Journalists distort the message of a story by omitting context and background information.
5. Selective omission: News stories lack objectivity when the media reports certain events over others, and ultimately controlling access to information.
6. Using true facts to draw false conclusions: Avoid using a fact as an advantage for reporting a side of story.
7. Distortion of facts: Always verify facts and sources before publishing a story.
Lack of objectivity in political media coverage
It's hard not losing your mind trying to keep a fair and unbiased perspective of candidates during election season. There are countless times the media has reported with bias or favoritism toward one candidate, and let's not forget the power Saturday Night Live, a popular sketch comedy show, has influencing the views of people. Everyone knows Hillary Clinton and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, because of the amount of media coverage they receive.
What's funny is, these two political figures haven't even announced themselves as presidential candidates for 2016, but they're already receiving enormous media coverage. In 2014, Pew Research Center analyzed 15 papers, and Clinton and Christie each had 82 headline stories linking them to the 2016 presidential campaign. However, sitting Vice President Joe Biden expressed interest in a presidential campaign, and has received little media coverage. Interesting. A sitting vice president received less media coverage for his rumored interest in running for president, while Clinton and Christie lead media coverage.
Why not run more stories on other potential presidential candidates? The 2016 election is bound to be interesting, but there is no need to begin promoting bias opinions two years in advance. Clinton and Christie's potential presidential campaigns make a great story, but does it make a true story? What's the real perspective?
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