The Problem of Objectivity

Media coverage lately has been dominated by journalists themselves. From the firings of reporters like Octavia Nasr, Rick Sanchez and Juan Williams to the most recent suspension of Keith Olbermann for contributing to the campaigns of Democratic candidates, it seems like the mainstream journalism is becoming more insistent on ensuring its “objectivity.”

Regarding their decision about Williams, NPR CEO Vivian Schiller explained: “Certainly you have opinions – all human beings have their personal opinions. But it is the ideal of journalism that we strive for objectivity so we can best present the positions of people around all parts of the debate to our public so the public can make their own decisions about these issues.”

Although it seems that we as Americans should prefer to have a press which holds fairness and balance as its central guiding values, in reality this emphasis on objectivity actually harms us as citizens.

Journalists in free societies are supposed to hold those we elect to power responsible. Journalists are supposed to give voice to the voiceless. And just as Schiller pointed out, journalists are supposed to provide us with the information necessary to help us make our own decisions about the issues.

It is precisely because journalists have such a unique position of directly shaping our opinions that it has become necessary for the field of journalism to reevaluate its insistence on objectivity.

A 2003 essay entitled “Re-Thinking Objectivity,” argued that the principles of objectivity made journalists “passive recipients of the news, rather than aggressive analyzers and explainers of it.” The prime example of this is the widespread reporting linking Saddam Hussein with Al-Qaeda and 9/11, claims that turned out to be completely fabricated after the American occupation of Iraq.

To guarantee balance by making sure there is equal coverage of both sides, reporters spend more time ensuring they have the same number of Israeli and Palestinian quotes in their stories rather than providing an actual context of what occupation entails or the role the United States plays in perpetuating it.

To ensure fairness by providing a range of opinions, we get television programs by ABC News called Should Americans Fear Islam featuring anti-Muslim bigots like Robert Spencer and Ayaan Hirsi Ali or a profile published by The New York Times about Pam Geller, the self-described “racist-Islamophobic-anti-Muslim-bigot” instead of an expose on the millions of dollars “experts” on Islam are making as they spread hatred.

To remain objective, our news reporting has been reduced to nothing more than presenting competing viewpoints and claims without any guidance by journalists to help people sift through all the information to come up with an in-depth understanding of the issues. Major news coverage is only a compilation of superficial details presented in a “he said, she said” framework. Differentiating between what is true and what is false is left to people who have little or no background knowledge.

By continuing to hold up this objectivity standard, mainstream American media also protects its own interests by avoiding the discussion of its role in maintaining the status quo.

FAIR- Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting- has been challenging media bias and censorship since 1986. They point out that since most media outlets are owned by for-profit corporations, they seldom provide a full range of debate. These news organizations are also under great pressure to boost ratings in order to attract advertisers and thus there is a tendency to sensationalize the news.

So media outlets focus far more attention on the protests of the Tea Party and Glen Beck in DC even though the crowds which came to these gatherings were far smaller and far more homogeneous than those which came out to the immigration reform rally back in March or the October One Nation Working Together march focusing on jobs, education and human rights issues.

Don’t be fooled by these recent high profile firings and take them as evidence that the media is doing its job because it is striving to maintain objectivity. The concept of objectivity not only diminishes the responsibilities of journalists and encourages lazy reporting; it also deflects attention from the structural changes that need to take place in media outlets.

We need to say enough is enough and demand our journalists not only seek truth and report it, but also be accountable to us: their readers, listeners and viewers.

Tags: FAIR, Journalism, Juan Williams, Keith Olbermann, Media Matters, Objectivity, Octavia Nasr, Ramah Kudaimi, Rick Sanchez