Keep Hope
A Journalist’s Diary
Reading the news has never felt more exhausting than in recent years. An article on hope in journalism reinforced the news approach I’ve adopted.
Instead of bowing out, I try to soak up the headline news I need while concentrating on the stories that matter (more to me). Those stories remind me that journalism matters. They also teach me not to give up on humankind and Mother Nature.
In today’s post, I’ll share a short reminder about that balancing act in journalism, the journalism privilege, and how hope and positivity don’t exclude “heavy issues.”
Journalism is a balancing act
There’s no shortage of violence, hatred, and distress to report on. That’s sadly not a recent development.
The impression that consuming news feels like plunging down a rabbit hole of hopelessness, violence, and supercharged political debates, however, feels recent even if it’s probably not.
The phrase “if it bleeds, it leads” is as old as journalism. I’ll never forget the enthusiastic eyes of the Ghanaian editors telling us the images of the burned corpses had to be printed because that’s what readers want to see.
I nodded in agreement when I read Jacqui Banaszynski’s line that “it would not be difficult, on any given day, to find even more to bum you out,” after sharing a laundry list of the heavy issues on the front pages of the news coverage.
The statement originates from her Nieman Storyboard post called When journalism is a defense against despair. She concludes that the “instinct to tune out” was understandable.
Banaszynski also writes about “emphatic distress” and “productive compassion,” concepts worth pondering.
I’ll leave that part for you to discover, which you should because it might show a path to better handle the news and the world.
The truth is that journalism can’t shy away from “bad news.”
But there’s so much more to life than death, destruction, and catastrophes. Finding a balance is maybe one of the most challenging aspects of journalism.
Journalism is hope
Hope and positivity don’t have to mean “fluffy” pieces.
Those qualities can be found in the darkest of places.
They can show themselves in stories about human capabilities and perseverance.
They can show themselves through being there, listening, bearing witness, and telling the stories that matter and deserve telling.
Bearing witness, deciding which true stories need hearing, and how to tell them is what makes journalism a rewarding challenge. It also shows why it’s a privilege and why human-oriented detail journalism is as important a part of the profession as any other.
Banaszynski calls it the “privilege of sitting with someone who wants their story told. Who needs their story told.”
And, as she concludes, while there aren’t any promises in journalism, “the sitting and the telling are what we do, and I believe that matters.”
I hope you found some value in today’s post. In a way, it queues up the first new Fun With Cameras post, which should come out in a few days because it’s all about hope.
