The U.S. public, especially right-leaning citizens, have increasingly distrusted the news media since 2015. According to the International Press Institute, there’s an increase in violence and harassment against journalists. Women journalists, LGBTQ+ journalists, and journalists of color are especially at risk.
Name-calling by political leaders, reporting that excludes a community's voice, and an increase of non-credible news sources on social media are all to blame for the public’s distrust of the news.
As the 2016 presidential race picked up, popular candidate Donald Trump began to use the term “fake news” to describe the media attempting to hold him accountable. Via Trump's candidacy and presidency, his influence inspired his constituents and other political candidates to call the press “fake news” whenever convenient.
Soon, many Republicans began to associate mainstream news outlets with fake news.
Republicans now distrust more credible sources and turn toward alternative media with varying forms of accuracy. Some have gone as far as to harass and assault the journalists they distrust.
Even though it involves confrontation, Journalists shouldn’t shy away from those who distrust them (if nonviolent). Different voices are necessary for the accuracy of a story. Diversity is necessary.
To earn the public's trust, newsrooms need diversity. There needs to be racial, gender, LGBTQ+, religious, and political representation among reporters, panelists, and anchors. Readers and viewers will trust the news more if it properly represents all voices in both the broadcasts and the reporting.
Journalists cannot leave voices out when reporting. Reporters must be willing to interview people who do not look like them nor think like them for the sake of balance and accuracy. If all voices of a community are heard and represented, then the news better represents a community.
Journalists should look for respected community members, like an organizer who knows all the people in their neighborhood.
According to Reuters Institute, social media platforms often obscure credible sources. When users log in to social media, their feed is bombarded with information from unfamiliar sources. While difficult to gauge the credibility of social media sources, some users fall for a fake account posing as a credible source. After sharing information from a fake account and being betrayed by the source, users begin to view social media news differently. On the contrary, social media also creates political echo chambers where users only hear what they want to hear.
According to Pew Research, 36% of Americans get news from Facebook regularly and half of Twitter’s users get news on Twitter regularly. Pew Research also finds that Americans who use social media as its main source of news are less engaged and less knowledgeable. Some Americans are unaware that they’ll run into fewer non-credible sources off social media.
It’s a daunting task for a journalist to take on a tech giant and lead the American public away from echo chambers. However, journalists and credible news accounts can help debunk faulty reporting, aiding users against bad actors on social media.
I was aware that there’s a large amount of hostility and violence against journalists. Firstly, from social media. When I look under a post by a journalist, they’d often get called terrible things in the comments. Brian Stelter of CNN has also shared stories over the years of journalists being harmed and harassed. I was aware of the rampant violence, racism, and sexism that journalists face. I was also familiar with journalists getting arrested during protests. I’ve heard stories of journalists being arrested without reason during the protests sparked by the murder of George Floyd. It upsets but does not surprise me that reporters at The Guardian endure so much racism and misogyny. It shocks me that it was so bad that The Guardian removed the comment section.
I was unaware that physical against the media has worsened, but it doesn’t surprise me since the U.S. is more polarized since 2016.
I was shocked that the words “murder the media” were written on the doors of the U.S. Capitol. It's startling that journalists practice for active shooter situations, according to International Press Institute. Although it's startling, it's not shocking. At least, the majority of those who don’t trust the media are not violent.
If a journalist is called “fake news” by a potential interviewee, the journalist can try to sympathize with the interviewee’s position. The journalist can try letting the interviewee know that the news will be unbalanced without their input. The journalist should also be transparent; reporters should let the interviewee know the story topic and how their quote will be utilized.
If interviewees see themselves well-represented on television, then trust in journalism can grow with each interview. Potentially, that interviewee can share their trust via word of mouth.
Comentários