Scope and Nature of Journalism- Where there is media, journalism exist
Journalism- The collection and dissemination of news through the printed media as well as the
electronic media. This involves various areas of work like reporting, writing, editing, photographing,
broadcasting or cable casting news items. It covers the printed media that comes in the form of
broadsheets, tabloids, newsletter and magazines.
As regards it etymology, journalism comes from the Latin word, diurnal, which
means daily. That is why there is word journal- a daily register of one‟s
activities. Hence, journalism a communication of da- to-day information,
whether through sounds, pictures and words.
Few places where journalism may appear include newspapers, magazines,
televisions, radios and the internet.
Newspapers are the oldest and most traditional format for the inclusion of
journalism. They are regularly scheduled publications containing news of
current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. Indeed,
newspapers originally started life as ‘journals’ from the word ‘journalism’ is derived.
During the 19th century, American journalism relied on semsational stories that
where used to excite or anger the public, rather than to inform them. This
form of journalism became know ‘yellow’ journalism. Accurate and fact-based
reporting became
became known as „yellow‟ journalism. Accurate and fact-based reporting
became
Magazines, on the other hand, are publications containing a variety of articles that
are generally published on a regular schedule, whether it be weekly, monthly or
quarterly. They usually take a much more relaxed format than newspapers, with a
more informal style on their writing. They are also usually focused on a particular
subject or area of interest, whereas newspaper articles can cover almost any topic.
First published in 1731 in London, The Gentleman‟s Magazine is considered the first
general-interest magazine. Its editor, Edward Cave (who wrote under the
pseudonym „Sylvanus Urban‟), was one of the very first to use the term
„magazine‟/
Television news journalism, including radio, is known as news broadcasting and
is produced locally in a newsroom or by a broadcast network. It sometimes also
includes such additional materials as sports coverage, weather forecast, traffics
reports, commentary, and the other material that the broad caster considers
relevant to the intended audience. Most major television channels offer
regular news broadcasts throughout the day.
Internet communications have excelled in the last decade or so, of course taking
the way news is published with it. There are now an uncountable digitized
number of reputable and no-so-reputable sources of information on the
internet. Everything from digitized versions of the very newspapers that headed up
the first print media movements hundreds of year ago, to independent
bloggers reporting their own stories from the comfort of their own laptops. Because
of this, opinions are much easier to come by, and users can seek out the
same story from, multiple sources to get more of a balanced view more than they
ever could in the past.
Partisan news and biased interviews violate the ideals of journalism: ergo, a
journalist should know the difference between news and opinion. Readers and
journalist alike, believe that newspapers should be objective. Thus, reporters
receive training from those who know journalistic rules, and learn to resolve
whatever conflict they may have.
Tenets of Journalism
Going into the road of journalism entails not only knowledge but also
responsibilities. Hence, their journalists are bound by strict guidelines.
Journalists
have rights, but they must bear on shoulders the duties to serve the interest of the
public.
1. Responsibility. Journalists should always be aware of their obligations to
their readers to write the truth whatever it cost. For this reason, journalists
must be brave enough to defend facts and truth behind the news. In this
sense, the journalist‟s main responsibility is to be the transmitter of
veracity in any issue, and that they are liable not to the company but to the
public.
2. Freedom of the Press. As a basic right, freedom of the press should be
safeguarded by the people of media. In this case, any topic under the
sweltering heat of the sun maybe written so long as there is no infraction
to the existing laws of the land.
3. Independence. Putting forward the life of one or two persons by slashing
the welfare of the general public is a clear violation of this tenet. It
therefore, means that the services of a journalist should be committed to
the interest of the general public and not driven by interest of money called
“envelopmental journalism.”
4. Objectivity, Truthfulness and Accuracy. Checking the veracity of data
and information before they are published is an example of being accurate
and truthful. Since facts are solid foundation of journalism, media men
should not therefore conceal the truth by fabricating facts and by
publishing misquoted statements and erroneous statistics
Teel and Taylor (1983), as cited by Pangilinan (2012), suggested guidelines
to attain a balanced story whenever journalists face controversial issues.
a. Stick to facts.
b. Never insert your personal opinion.
c. Be discreet in the use of adjectives.
d. Avoid cheap chats.
e. Somebody with something to say deserve a forum.
f. Asses your alliance. Remember that you are an observer, not a
participant.
g. Listen to your editor.
5. Fairness. The whole
point in the advocating objectivity is to be fair in
presenting information in any journalistic field. Remember, the public will
see the topic according to the way journalist present it; hence, reporters
should exercise telling the truth and putting the information in the right
perspective.
In this vein, journalist should always present both sides of the arguments and
points of controversial issue. They should set both avenues for the opposing parties
to ventilate their arguments and points of clarifications. With this in mind, journalist,
too, must respect the privacy of individuals, unless, there is a warrant of public
right.
In case there is mistake, true journalist should rectify the said error, thus the errata
in
newspapers
