It’s the media’s job to know what’s going on. And yet, when it comes to understanding why so many people can’t stand them, they always seem to be the last to know.
If only WaPo’s Margaret Sullivan is any indication, journalists need a study to tell them they suck. And even then, they still don’t really get it:
New research shows a troubling disconnect between core journalistic values (accountability, transparency, giving a voice to the less powerful) and the American public. My column breaks it down https://t.co/iDnqTNVlR2
— ? Margaret Sullivan (@Sulliview) April 14, 2021
'Journalists are a tribe, and we think everybody shares our values' says @TomRosenstiel. Not so, says this studyhttps://t.co/iDnqTNVlR2
— ? Margaret Sullivan (@Sulliview) April 14, 2021
Put on your shocked faces:
But, according to some major new research released today, these values [oversight, transparency, factuality, spotlighting wrongdoing, and giving a voice to the voiceless] can be a turnoff for the general public. And it suggests that journalists who want to reach the broadest audience and have the greatest impact should consider changing how they think about and present their work.
But there are ways to present and frame our work to appeal to a broader audience, says the research from @AmPress and @APNORC
— ? Margaret Sullivan (@Sulliview) April 14, 2021
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Hey, here’s a suggestion: journalists could actually try practicing what they preach. So crazy, it just might work!
But that would require introspection, of course, and journalists like Margaret Sullivan can never get very deep below the surface.
'Media trust' is a Mobius strip with 'the feel of people talking past each other.' Journalists hotly deny that they slant the news while critics on the right scoff at them, and some on the left question the entire point of objectivity:
— ? Margaret Sullivan (@Sulliview) April 14, 2021
Sullivan concludes:
This research, troubling as it is, offers journalists the chance to think differently. Given the depth of our trust problem, we would do well to take that opportunity.
Well, given that Sullivan has basically just squandered a golden opportunity to take responsibility for her own role in fueling public distrust of the media, we won’t hold our breath for her to take the opportunity to “think differently.”
"How can we make these peasants understand that we're just too pure for this world?" https://t.co/B6TmveqdvY
— I got your #Unity right here (@jtLOL) April 14, 2021
"The American public just doesn't appreciate the noble work that 60 Minutes is doing"
— Joey Postlewaite (@JoeyPostlewaite) April 14, 2021
"It's the children who are wrong." https://t.co/rQdTqQ2v71
— Nathan Wurtzel (@NathanWurtzel) April 14, 2021
Sure, blame the American public for the malpractice of American journalism. Why not?
— Noam Blum ? (@neontaster) April 14, 2021
Gives journalists something to do, since they’re not really all that interested in actual journalism.
if you think that's bad, you should see the disconnect between journalistic values and journalisthttps://t.co/hNMnyHyutS
— David Burge (@iowahawkblog) April 14, 2021
Most people would support your stated journalistic values.
The reason most people despise the media is that not only do you not practice those values, but that you actively engage in bullying and propagandizing for parties and ideologies utterly incompatible with those values. https://t.co/SgPGVzKV5L— Farbrook (@dutchindian) April 14, 2021
https://twitter.com/JimmyDHart1/status/1382294982820827148
The disconnect is between core journalistic values and the American media. https://t.co/ZeP9B03XOl
— Noam Blum ? (@neontaster) April 14, 2021
I think the troubling disconnect is between core journalistic values and journalists. The American public is just reacting to it
— Yeshaya (@Yeshaya86) April 14, 2021
Exactly. Journalists have done this to themselves.
Case in point:
Of course.
I was not surprised (any more) but shaking my head nonetheless that this was retweeted by @jaketapper – whom I'm sure believes he exemplifies these values.
— CabinLoon (@cabinloon) April 14, 2021
Oh, Jake Tapper absolutely believes he exemplifies those values.
Which is why if the media are hoping for the public to embrace them, they’re going to be waiting a long, long time. Maybe forever.
"Core journalistic values." What a joke. You only care about your own careers, and anyone who gets in the way be damned. https://t.co/B6TmveqdvY
— I got your #Unity right here (@jtLOL) April 14, 2021
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