Algorithm Blog Post

In journalism, objectivity means reporting news that are truthful, unbiased, and balanced. Bruckner cited in Ward (2009, p. 73) that lately, reporters should deliver unbiased information that has no opinion in it and should never take any side in any news. To traditional views of objectivity, a report is considered objective if:

• Delivers truthful and accurate happening of an event.
• Reports only facts and removes any unnecessary comment and clarification done by the reporter.
• Takes no sides, neutral for both sides on an issue.
• Reporter’s opinion should not be included in any report

However, it is important in an open and democratic society to ensure impartial and balanced news so to eliminate the chances to face biased and objectified news.

Moving on, according to McKelvey (2004, Vol 39, No 4,), Algorithms control the media and information systems. However Lotan (2003, p.4) said that algorithm is a list of instructions that a machine performs in order to calculate a function (recommendations, friend suggestions…), it is also considered as a string of commands programmed to execute defined tasks and a piece of computer code that transforms input data into a desired output, based on specified calculations.

In fact, algorithmic media previews several options, surprises us with suggested links, and gives us wider space for choosing among the results that we get on google, Facebook or other platforms.

Moving on, AJ Agrawal (2016) said that according to Facebook, they want to make sure that people receive the content Facebook actually care about, which made it difficult for businesses pages and people to be noticed. Unfortunately, he also stated “Facebook alters its algorithms all the time, making this a constant race between marketers and everyone else.” According to twitter, “they have toyed with a number of changes, including the idea that Tweets could be boosted to a maximum of 10,000 characters. Like Facebook, they have decided on implementing algorithms that bases what you see on relevance not on chronology.” Moving to Instagram, “they have decided to base what you see on your news feed on relevancy, as opposed to anything else. Rather than hiding posts, like on Facebook, businesses are not going to take as much of a hit because all posts will still be visible, but they will always come behind posts that are considered to be the most relevant”.

Google is different from legacy media since computer algorithms make editorial decisions. Important and truth-values are calculated by computer code, it never presents just one view on a topic but multiple perspectives at the same time. We can also decide in which order and sequence we consult them to learn what the case is or what is going on.

In the future, social media networks will adopt the same algorithms as technology becomes more advanced; algorithm-based feeds will become more intelligent and engagement will be the only metric that matters (Agrawal, 2016).

We can just end the mischief of algorithm on objectivity we change its approaches. For example, how Google recommends the congruity of a sentence is so irritating, individuals realize what they are searching for. I propose that we would need to give clarifications to each report, page, picture, or even word served on the page. Individuals merit a clarification and are permitted to comprehend why Wikipedia pops first, why this particular picture is on the best, and why a few connections are toward the finish of the page.

A journalistic viewpoint depends on an arrangement of moral standards, constraining journalists to take away their partiality and inclinations with the end goal to convey the story in the most target way that is available. Subsequently, the result of a mechanical stage would not be contrasted with that of a balanced cognizance of a columnist.

To conclude, algorithm in media plays a major role. It will filter for us the search and helps us find what we need faster but sometimes the algorithm might be changed and modified to please the company’s purpose and not the user’s purpose for example Facebook. However, some other engines deliver truthful and needed information for the user just like Google. Algorithm will keep on changing and developing with technology, but, we can end the harm of algorithm by changing the way it works in some engines and by justifying to people why they are seeing this certain information when they search a specific thing.

Reference:

Bruckner, Ward (2009) ‘Truth and Objectivity’ in Wilkins & Christians (eds.) Handbook of Mass Media Ethics, Routledge, London; New York, pp. 71–83;

Fenwick Robert McKelvey, (2004), in Algorithmic Media Need Algorithmic Methods: Why Publics Matter, Canadian Journal of communication, Vol 39, No 4, https://www.cjc-online.ca/index.php/journal/article/view/2746

Lotan, (2013) Networked Audiences, in McBride, K. & Rosenstiel, T. The new Ethics of Journalism, Sage, London, p. 4

Agrawal, AJ (2016). What Do Social Media Algorithms Mean For You? https://www.forbes.com/sites/ajagrawal/2016/04/20/what-do-social-media-algorithms-mean-for-you/#764a18f3a515