Objectivity in Journalism

Every journalism class I have ever taken has talked about the importance of objectivity. How reporters need to make sure that every story we present is completely factual and free of opinion. Our personal beliefs should never be a part of an article, because if we include our beliefs, it will no longer be factual or correct. Our readers will not trust our facts if our opinion is included.

But independent media has shown me that people can express their views in an article and it can still be factual. Readers can find blogs that express the same political views as them for example, and read articles from them about what they want to hear, instead of seeking out mainstream outlets like Fox News that pretend as though they do not have their own views.

Glenn Greenwald will often begin his blogs by saying how he feels about an issue, and then present facts that he has researched himself.

Reporters should no longer focus solely on objectivity, and instead on transparency. This allows reporters to be open about their views about a topic, so that they can then present facts without worrying about sounding biased. Their biases are out in the open, and to me, that means that readers should trust reporters more because they are able to be truly honest with their readers. They can then present facts.

This would also allow people to read different points of views on topics. For example, openly conservative blogs like Legal Insurrection could help a liberal understand where they are coming from on a topic. Both parties would benefit from learning more about the other party so as to be more educated about the election as a whole.