what this series says about journalism
what this series tells me is that journalism is higly noble line of work, but in its purest form it's a danger to the people who put themselves in danger to give information to journalists ;-)
shareYou know, I just finished both seasons of this show and it makes me feel some odd mix of sadness and inspiration. It's the same with The Newsroom. The way these shows portray the news... Like Bel says of Freddie, "The truth isnt something you should have to lie about" (or something to that effect). When I watch this show I feel inspired to get out there and find some truth. The same thing with The Newsroom. But then I watch the actual news and dont feel that same spark. And of course its easier to portray these sorts of emotions in a scripted show--the events arent real and are, therefore, open to manipulation in order to create the desired emotion. But at the same time, its the timeline of this particular show that gets me--when journalism truly was a noble enterprise, especially for the British who are known for balanced reporting, even today. When the world was potentially on the brink of destruction, when no one knew what the next day would bring, when countries were getting to know where they stood with one another.
IDK, i have a B.A. in journalism and the idealism displayed in shows like The Newsroom and The Hour makes me remember why I majored in journalism to begin with; the real world, not so much.
Any thoughts?
Journalism is noble work when serving the public good is considered more important than ratings.
There was a time in the US when news departments were expected to inform, and ratings were secondary.
Today ratings are all that matter for network and cable news. SO we get news that is deceptive if that's what it takes to maximize profit.
One well known example is that, horrifying outliers aside, the United States today is safer than it has been in decades, and yet the populous believes it is more dangerous, because of commercial news "if it bleeds it leads" mentality.
For those with access, I strongly recommend watching news from a source that is still independent of the need to win in the ratings. (BBC, CTV, PBS, etc.)
what is the cost of fiding the truth? is it possible to be like freddie, excited about the death of a woman who helped you? or is it naive for Belle to feel some kind of guilt about a person who put herself in danger and even if she didn't die wouldn't have gained the glory the likes of freedie would bask into after publishing the story?
and let's be honest Freddie is in pursuit of the truth and his own ambitions, those two goals seem to be on the same track for now...
"The fact is that the public have an insatiable curiosity to know everything, except what is worth knowing. Journalists, conscious of this and having tradesman-like habits, supply their demands." Oscar Wilde
shareIf you want a dose of the cynicism of modern TV news where everything is dished up in 2 minute bites, you can't go past Frontline (1994). It had to change its name to "Breaking News" when shown on US TV.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0108780/combined
It is a biting comedy that shows the background to some of the current affairs shows. Enough to either turn you off YV journalism or attempt to get a show going like The Hour.