jm257310@ohio.edu
After reading both of these articles it got me thinking about the word transparency and what it truly means not just in journalism both in general. In journalism that word is one the the core values that we strive to live through. Journalist want to be known as a transparent source of news. That means that there isn't any source of non-sense that is involved with their writing or conveying of news. In general the word transparency normally means see right through it. Clear, concise, what you see is what you get. Now a days thats not always the case with journalism. Is it possible that the word itself has become less transparent then before?
As I was looking around the internet I came across an article talking about lying and transparency. The article raised the question is there a time and place to be transparent and a time to lie. You would like to think that the answer is black and white and is easy to figure out, but the real answer is not. It is fill with grey and clouds that isn't very transparent as it should be. When it comes to the public relations side of journalism they have a stigma of not always telling the story straight and being "transparent". Its not just the public relations field that has been getting flack nowadays its all of journalism taking that heat.
The public is quickly losing faith in the transparency of the journalism field always feeling like their is a higher agenda or an angle that is being pushed by on of these bigger companies. In the example about that site that is run by Verizon, it is just another example of these big corporations that are trying to gentle push their brand out there a little farther in medium that they don't much about and them not be 100% transparent in the process. These little acts of branding that these companies do only do more harm then good in my opinion. I think that if these little non-profit sites are done correctly then they can do a lot of good. (cc: Texas Tribune) It's just that there have been too many companies apologizing for funding these small sites that are trying to secretly push their brand.
The term net neutrality is going away and while we were use to sites pushing certain products or things they were never publicly sponsored by these big companies. Nowadays the transparency of these ads are just going away and losing that clear and consciousness that we once knew. Part of it has to do with the social media and how they have expanded. These sites have now put in question is transparency the new objectivity and that is something that big corporations, journalist and people need to to understand. So the word transparency and what we once knew it as might have more holes then a slice of swiss cheese but I think that isn't how it has to be. Journalists and writers and learn to rediscover what that word truly means and hold it to that. They can regain the faith of the public but it starts by staying true to your values and ethics. It will not be a quick turn around, because this has been like a snowball rolling down a hill. I think that if their is going to be a generation to incite some major changes with all this new technology it might be the one that is about to get the reins.
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