Independence of Faction

Should journalists keep independent from those they cover by remaining non-partisan and objective in essentially all they do? Most journalists would say yes. Phrases such as 'Journalism is a way of life,' and 'Its a sacrifice journalists make' frequently are heard when discussing independence. I think that independence is certainly necessary but what frustrates me is the clear hypocrisy shown by journalists. At the national, it is obvious that we have an abundance of opinion journalism and very little considerations for the independence of faction belief that journalists are supposed to have.



I am not at all convinced that bias, and the removal of it, is always in the mind of the journalist when they are writing or discussing a topic. But I believe wholeheartedly that it should be. There are many media that claim to be 'news sources' but there is an apparent bias in much of their reporting that worries me. Instead of watching the news and being able to form your own opinion, the opinion is being formed for you. What good does professing to be non-partisan and objective do when no one actually believes that you are?

I do not feel much sympathy towards most journalists on this issue (and I believe most of the pubic would agree) because they usually come off seeming self-righteous on top of their clear hypocrisy. The only true way to remedy this is for bias to be removed or balance to be restored to the media. Codes of conduct and professed objectivity are not going to cut it any more; we need to see results.The news media should not be hindering the viewers abilities to make opinions in the first place, yet sometimes it is clear that rather than reflecting public opinion it is creating it.