Serious journalism: Speaking the truth
People like Donald Trump and Roger Ailes have painted the media in a negative light to where people don’t even know what is real anymore and have developed a hatred for journalism as a whole. The people claim the media produces “fake news,” and while that might be true for some organizations, others have said nothing except the truth, which has benefited the nation.
The films “Spotlight” and “All the President’s Men” involved cases in which influential figures or organizations among society are using their power to commit heinous acts. Yes, people like the president, the governor, the pope and the CEOs have done things that they don’t want the public to be aware of at any point.
And, yes, the journalists revealed the truth, and those in power were either removed or monitored more closely.
But when it comes to serious journalism in the modern-day, people seem to have forgotten what would’ve happened if the Catholic Church or Watergate scandal weren’t reported. Also, people seem not to remember all the events or people the media has exposed who would’ve gotten away.
Journalism, despite its faults at certain times, has done a lot of good for the American people and is needed to make the world a better place.
In the film “Spotlight,” the Boston Globe discovered that the Catholic Church had been molesting children for years across the nation. Also, they found that lawyers, judges, CEOs and many other influential people were aware and ignored the churches’ actions.
The journalists, Mike Rezendes and Sacha Pfeiffer, were the ones who uncovered the truth and gathered all the information needed to bring the church and those involved with the crime down. Journalism is what it took to bring an influential group like them down by making the public aware of what they were doing.
Without journalism or media, it would take a more extended amount of time for important news or information to get around to the public. And, yes, the more time it takes the public to be informed, the higher the chance of those in power covering up their actions or retaliating against those who seek their downfall.
Lawyers protected the Catholic Church similar to how the Republicans continue to protect President Trump even with the testimony claiming him be involved in quid pro quo.
If Mike and Sacha never pressured the lawyers or attempted to get the victims of the church to open up, the church would’ve continued their actions unhindered, and years could’ve gone by before authorities discovered their crimes.
People in power like Nixon or Trump displayed the fact that they have a “toxic” relationship with the press, and the only reason they do is like Chuck Todd said, “… the loudest squealers are usually the ones we have exposed doing something untoward.” Journalists like him are the ones who seek out the truth and only the truth.
In the film “All the President’s Men,” President Nixon was hiding his connection to the “burglars” who “broke” into the Watergate hotel and used his power to obstruct justice deliberately. Recently, the Watergate prosecutor Richard Ben-Veniste was discussing Trump’s impeachment hearings and said, “The president has subverted American national security for his political interest,” which is similar to what Nixon did in the 1970s.
Journalism is a part of society and is needed so people can know what’s going on in the world. It has people who will speak the truth and those who will say what they want people to hear, but it’s better to know something than know nothing at all.
