Related articles and links |  1 of 3

As we write this, the Brenda Starr comic strip is featuring an Internet-rumormonger-turned-journalist named Ratt Sludge. Like most of her real-life counterparts, our high-minded heroine is appalled at the way gossip now masquerades as reporting, and the pursuit of circulation and ratings these days trumps the pursuit of truth.

Brenda Starr has a point. Americans have plenty to be worried about as journalistic irresponsibility has grabbed headlines on the front pages, stimulated self-flagellation and self-righteousness on the editorial pages, and, yes, spawned satire on the comic pages.

• The Cincinnati Enquirer in June published a front-page apology to Chiquita Brands because one of its reporters had allegedly stolen thousands of messages from the banana firm's voice-mail system.
• CNN and Time, also in June, conceded they did not have adequate proof to back up a lengthy report alleging that the U.S. military had used deadly sarin nerve gas to kill American defectors in Laos during the Vietnam War. Correspondent Peter Arnett got his hands slapped. Two producers got fired.
• The Boston Globe, earlier this year, apologized after one of its most popular columnists admitted to having fictionalized people and quotes.
• The New Republic owned up to multiple fabrications and fantasies on the part of a young hotshot writer.

One such trespass might be the result of an individual, irresponsible, rogue reporter. But this epidemic of journalistic felonies (violation of privacy, fraud, unsubstantiated allegations) is evidence of something bigger: The practice of reporting the news has lost its moorings in telling the truth, plainly and simply.

In 1996, the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) overhauled its ethics statement, anchoring the practice of newsgathering to four principles: Seek the truth and report it; minimize harm; act independently; and be accountable.

Unfortunately, all four of these principles are under assault in new ways. The growing trend of journalistic commentary is undermining the time-tested role of the media in reporting accurately and truthfully. Several months ago, the Project for Excellence in Journalism surveyed coverage of the White House intern scandal, finding that nearly half of what newspapers published in the first week of the scandal was commentary. In the public's consciousness, journalists, both print and broadcast, are slightly more credible than used-car salesmen. News commentary sells a point of view. But commentary is all too often seeping into straight news coverage. The coverage of Monicagate demonstrates how far the news media have detoured not only into commentary but speculation.

The principle of minimizing harm is a refreshingly honest admission that too many individuals caught in the headlights of the news media end up as road kill. In journalism school, educators drill many an aphorism into students' minds, including their mission "to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable." But in the public's mind, journalism has moved from afflicting the comfortable to afflicting anything in its path.

The SPJ code says, "Pursuit of the news is not a license for arrogance." Unless journalists make allowances for the inherently intrusive nature of newsgathering, they are likely to face yet greater public hostility. Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), at the urging of the Screen Actors Guild, are sponsoring legislation that would make it a federal offense for the "menacing pursuit" of a celebrity or a news subject. Though such a law would be practically unenforceable, it would have a chilling effect, exposing much legitimate newsgathering to costly civil litigation.

next page... |  1 of 3

September 7 1998, Vol. 42, No. 10