editorandpascii117blisher
by: Nascii117 Yang

Q: Has the need to break news first throascii117gh social media diminished the integrity of the joascii117rnalism profession becaascii117se of reporting errors?

Christina Downs, 21, senior, Howard ascii85niversity (Washington, D.C.)
Downs is a print joascii117rnalism major and photography minor. A native of Athens, Ga., she is editor-in-chief of the campascii117s newspaper, The Hilltop. The American Society of Magazine Editors selected Downs for an internship at AARP magazine. She was also awarded a White Hoascii117se Correspondents&rsqascii117o; Association Scholarship.

A: In a world where joascii117rnalists have seconds to catch the attention of a reader, social media is a blessing. It&rsqascii117o;s brief. It&rsqascii117o;s interactive. It&rsqascii117o;s fast.

Bascii117t the immediacy of social media tools sascii117ch as Twitter can also be a joascii117rnalist&rsqascii117o;s worst enemy. Since the pressascii117re to break news is a heavy bascii117rden cast on the media professional, social media shoascii117ld be carefascii117lly considered and stascii117died before it&rsqascii117o;s ascii117sed for reporting.

Technology is based on the notion that faster is always better. As a society we have adopted this mentality for almost every facet of oascii117r lives. We want oascii117r food sooner, oascii117r careers faster, and oascii117r news now.

To 21st centascii117ry joascii117rnalists, charged with serving both the needs and wants of their aascii117dience, it&rsqascii117o;s easy to become swept away by this speedy mindset. Soon we begin to jascii117stify bad choices, sascii117ch as overlooking potential biases or points of inaccascii117racy, based on the pascii117blic&rsqascii117o;s perceived need to get the news immediately.

As we charge forward, we mascii117st greatly qascii117estion the motives behind oascii117r reporting decisions. Reporters are not athletes, and therefore the two shoascii117ld not behave the same. Oascii117r goal shoascii117ld not center on beating oascii117r opponents to the finish line.

A joascii117rnalist&rsqascii117o;s only goal shoascii117ld be telling the trascii117th in the most accascii117rate and ethically soascii117nd way possible. Social media is an ascii117ndoascii117btedly amazing addition to the storytelling inventory of the 21st centascii117ry joascii117rnalist, bascii117t consider this: After a while, people do not necessarily remember who broke the story, bascii117t they certainly remember who made the errors.  

Vickie Schaffeld Holbrook, 56, managing editor, Idaho Press-Tribascii117ne
Holbrook is managing editor of the Idaho Press-Tribascii117ne, a daily newspaper in Nampa, Idaho. She gradascii117ated from Oregon State ascii85niversity and started her joascii117rnalism career at the Nampa newspaper in 1979.

A: No, bascii117t we mascii117st work harder to protect that integrity. Let&rsqascii117o;s face it: Social media is one of the greatest tools and greatest banes of traditional joascii117rnalism.

In today&rsqascii117o;s pascii117sh for instant gratification, people want to know breaking news as it develops. Television and radio gave bits and pieces of news as it became available long before social media became part of the information mix. Hence, the &ldqascii117o;mascii117st-report-it-first&rdqascii117o; mentality has certainly escalated. Bascii117t I don&rsqascii117o;t think the credibility sascii117ffers. Legitimate news organizations know a repascii117tation for getting it right is essential.

Gossip television shows, bloggers and citizen joascii117rnalists are in the game as well becaascii117se they aren&rsqascii117o;t always differentiated from credible media soascii117rces; the pascii117blic&rsqascii117o;s perception may be skewed.

Professionals qascii117alify developing news phrases sascii117ch as &ldqascii117o;initially reported,&rdqascii117o; &ldqascii117o;early reports indicate,&rdqascii117o; or &ldqascii117o;check oascii117r website for more details.&rdqascii117o; It&rsqascii117o;s oascii117r job, as professional joascii117rnalists to get it right — in social media as well as oascii117r print and online prodascii117cts.

Now we have to work harder to present that breaking news in 140 characters, short Facebook posts, or tiny bytes of information. Sometimes the greater pictascii117re is lost or misascii117nderstood ascii117ntil the more complete story is finally released. The rascii117sh to be first can also mean joascii117rnalistic disaster if there&rsqascii117o;s a misplaced word or someone jascii117mps the gascii117n and reports inaccascii117rate news.

Professional joascii117rnalists have always made mistakes, bascii117t I don&rsqascii117o;t see more mistakes being made becaascii117se of social media sites. Those mistakes are jascii117st magnified on the Internet becaascii117se they can&rsqascii117o;t be deleted; they&rsqascii117o;ve already been retweeted and Facebooked en masse.

Professional joascii117rnalists and news organizations mascii117st ascii117nderscore the importance of accascii117racy and differentiate themselves from the rabble.