This weeks reading is about investigative reporting and the
weakening watchdog role of journalism. I thought it was interesting when Kovach
and Rosenstiel talked about how new investigative reporting is mostly “tabloid
treatment of everyday events” (151). When
I first read this I was surprised because I hadn’t really thought about what
was investigative journalism and what wasn’t. I just watch or read the news and
don’t think about which stories are investigative.
When I thought more about what Kovach and Rosenstiel said, I
realized I had been exposed to these types of stories a lot without even
realizing it. Watching things like local television news and seeing stories
about what’s really in your food…I never thought that was investigative
journalism. It’s sad to think that this is what we consider investigative
journalism and that we are relying on each other as watchdogs.
The press was designed to keep those in power in check and
now it’s primary job is being compromised.
Yes, Lindsey. I think that the role of the watchdog has dramatically changed. We live in a celebrity driven culture, and the investigative pieces found in the tabloids reign supreme. I don't see this function of the watchdog changing anytime soon either. American's are vain, and there's a huge market for entertainment news. It's crazy to think that a show like E! News is receiving top advertising dollars for their news coverage.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you. I never realized that a lot of types of journalism can actually fall under the category of investigative journalism. The book explains how investigative journalism can really lead to controversy and debate because of who the story might be about, and it seems that are the more important types of investigative reporting. We also see a lot of movies about them, so they are easier to identify, but really, it's true that a lot of what we see on tv and in news can be considered investigative.
ReplyDeleteThe "real story" about Brad and Angelina is not investigative journalism. True dat.
ReplyDeleteI think the point on local news is great; "Coming up, are you eating poison?" And you can get completely drawn into it without even thinking about the sources, and if it may be more of an opinion than a news story.
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