Journalism Then & Now

What do you think of when you hear the word “journalist”? Maybe you envision someone in a suit and hat, with a notebook and pen in hand. Or maybe you think of someone furiously pounding away at a typewriter. Regardless of how they look, journalists play a key role in informing our world about current events and news. Their work brings to light things that would otherwise be lost or quickly forgotten about. Journalism allows people to see and read about things that happen thousands of miles away from them. 

Today, I want to take you on a quick trip through history to show how journalism has changed and how it has stayed the same. 

Defining Our Terms

First we need to consider the definitions of a journalist and journalism. “Journalist” is a broader term that encompasses a reporter, editor, columnist, and more. Each of these individuals gather news and information to share with the public. Their goal is to educate and inform. Their task is to collect and craft information into a palatable and interesting form for readers and viewers to consume. 

The point of journalism is to gather, assemble, and present news and information. According to the Masters in Communications Org, “Journalism is meant to place the public good above all else and uses specific methods to gather and assess information. In other words, journalism is meant to benefit the people, and journalists should routinely check what they're reporting on to be sure the information is verified and accurate.” Although, there is no single code of ethics that journalists hold to, various journalist oaths and codes of ethics exist. For example, the Society of Professional Journalists has a code of ethics that holds a journalist to an ethic of integrity, honesty, and compassion. 

Journalism Through Time

The earliest known piece of “journalism” was the Acta Diurna, a daily piece published in ancient Rome which recorded various speeches. From there various weekly and daily newspapers began to be published as early as 1609. By the 1700’s, multiple countries were publishing daily newspapers. For example, in 1783, Benjamin Towne began the first American daily publication called the Pennsylvania Evening Post. 

Today, there are thousands of journalistic and news publications and thousands of journalists whose goal is to report and write about factual events. While news was originally published on paper, today, it is increasingly being published online. It exists on various media platforms, websites, blogs, and even on social media as people and news outlets share opinions and information. However, it should be noted that a personal post on social media is not considered journalism since they are not collecting, preparing, and disseminating information in the way that a journalist would. 

Changes, Challenges, and Benefits

Even this brief look at the history of journalism shows how its presentation has changed, but there are other differences as well. In terms of what’s changed, journalists today face the pressure of a 24-hour news cycle, competition, and capturing and keeping an audience’s loyalty. Many years ago, people would have been content to read whatever they had access to because it would have been their connection to what happened in the world outside. Now, anyone can have access to news at every moment and see new updates extremely quickly.

This means that journalists no longer have the same amount of time they did to double-check their facts. It’s become a race to see who will publish the latest thing first. This has led to a lot of misinformation and biased, sloppy journalism. Shortened attention spans contribute to the neverending “need” for 15 to 30 seconds worth of information. 

The 24-hour news cycle, internet, and other technological developments, also means that in a sense, anyone can become a journalist. This opens up another avenue for misinformation, as it is very easy for the average citizen to speak their mind and have no kind of accountability for the veracity of their comments. This presents a challenge for journalists who must maintain people’s loyalty and trust and provide accurate, fact-based information in a short amount of time. While in the past, journalists may have faced opposition to what they said, today, they face the pressure to not just say something, but to say it faster than the other person.

However, there are some benefits to technology and this new journalistic environment.  Journalists have much more information at their fingertips and opportunities to reach wide audiences across the U.S. or even across the world. The resources both informationally and technologically vastly increase the reach of a journalistic piece. As was mentioned earlier, journalists have a unique opportunity to talk about a lot of different topics and issues, and advancements in technology allow them to talk about even more things. 

Being a Good Journalist

As far as what has stayed the same, journalists still maintain a goal of presenting fact-based, objective work, although many pieces are biased. The goal is still to educate and inform and how that is done is the same. 

In all, journalism has been through many changes, whether it’s the medium, the environment, or the amount of viewers. Each change brings with it new challenges. Regardless of these challenges, however, journalists must strive to continue to craft compelling stories that are fact-based and truthful. If you are a journalist or aspiring to be one, this should be your goal as well. 

We don’t want to live in a world that throws around opinions and falsehoods regardless of the lives of others. Proverbs 18:21 says, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.” Always remember that words have power.