Few can deny that the news has been getting more and more opinionated, but is that necessarily a bad thing? A Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter said there are some benefits to reporters sharing their opinions.
Geneva Overholser, an independent journalist working in New York City, spoke at the University Center Theater Tuesday as part of the 3rd annual Norm Brewer First Amendment Lecture Series.
Professor Otis Sanford, Hardin Chair of Excellence in Journalism and the student chapters of the Society of Professional Journalists and National Association of Black Journalists, hosted the event.
For decades, objectivity-reporting news without bias or slant-has been the norm in U.S. newsrooms. But, as Overholser said, that isn't the case in many European newspapers and wasn't the case in the U.S. until the last 100 years or so.
The rise of social media has made it easier than ever for people to share their thoughts, which has lead to the supremacy of objectivity being questioned.
Overholser challenged whether or not objectivity has been completely beneficial, admitting that while her knee-jerk reaction to the rise of opinion journalism was that it was a problem, the current state of objectivity in the news was "distressing."
She brought up reporting of hot-button topic such as climate change and global warming as an example. News outlets, afraid of looking like they were taking a slant, would entertain any opinion, no matter how ludicrous.
As a result, the U.S. public's trust in the media dropped. A 1976 Gallup poll found that 75 percent of U.S. citizens trusted the news. Now, the number has fallen to just about 25 percent.
"These are pretty sorry numbers for an industry that purports to be the lifeblood of America," said Overholser.
Overholser believes reporting has been merely the recitation of facts without context.
She brought up a situation from her past career, when the big news item of the day was the breakup of Yugoslavia. Papers would publish stories detailing the conflict, but readers would have trouble understanding what was going on. Reporters would dump a collection of new information into a story and just assume their readers knew exactly what was happening from the get-go.
As a result, news consumers turned away from traditional news outlets in search of something that would provide both context and information - and justify their opinions at the same time. Modern Internet technology has made it easier than ever for both reporters and opinion writers to connect with their readers.
"Now, not only can anyone with a crackpot opinion be heard, but anyone with a thoughtful story can go viral," Overholser said.
News outlets could reap the benefits of this media revolution if they were careful about making sure their readers, viewers and listeners were absolutely clear about what they were getting into. Overholser emphasized the importance of transparency for news outlets.
"It isn't wrong to give opinion journalism, but it is wrong not to tell your readers, viewers and listeners what you're trying to do," said Overholser.
But the responsibility isn't just on news outlets to stay transparent. News consumers have to do their own work. There are now more avenues than ever for news consumption, but it's up to the consumer to consume wisely.
"If you don't like the news you are consuming, then consume something else," said Overholser.
Overholser previously worked as editor of The Des Moines Register from 1988 to 1995, an ombudsman and columnist for The Washington Post from 1995 to 1998, an editorial writer for The New York Times and director of the University of Southern California's Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.
The Norm Brewer First Amendment Lecture Series was named after Norman Brewer, a reporter and, from 1995 until his death from cancer in 2010, a commentator for WREG. Though his skill as a journalist won him many fans-among them, Memphis mayor AC Wharton-Brewer was most famous for his support of the sanitation workers' strike in 1968, which lead to him becoming an honorary member of the NAACP.
