The Unquestioned Rule of Journalists' Writings

For the last one year one podcast had stirred up the nation and Korea’s media circles. The hosts attacked the living power including President Lee and exposed their wrongdoings with the filthy and vulgar language. The book one host published rolled on the bestseller lists. Even another host ran a candidate of the opposition party of National Assembly at the last April election.

The one year’s drama of the podcast, sarcastically titled ‘Naneun Ggomsuda (I’m a Petty Trickster)’, suddenly ended as if many fans come to know and are disappointed with the real appearance of their loved stars unmasked from their make-up and powdered face.

The podcast spoke out the unproven facts without hesitation. Their expression of political preferences was so overt that their language is beneficial for the opposition party and progressive forces, but hostile against the ruling party and conservative forces.

In the position of the general readers, since the internet age the frank, emotional, outspoken, aggressive, subjective language looks fresh, while the authoritative, rational, high-browed, objective one looked obsolete, even an anachronism. This changed taste of the general people gave especially large impact on the traditional media and journalists. Some hasty and younger journalists mimicked the new born writing styles and even became passionate followers toward the emotional and subjective styles.

All things have an end. We humans are forced to learn some lessons after making mistakes.

There need different writing styles for different media, that’s right. But journalism has a rule that defines its existence. Its rule is ‘objectivity’. The journalists’ reports are the same as the written judgment, government’s official writ, a detective’s record, a valid contract. It’s not a novel, poet, column, speech, argument made on the ground of ‘subjectivity’.

We must remember that ‘journalism has a suffix of ‘ism’, which means a belief. The belief of journalism is the objectivity that all persons can accept. Of course, the complete objectivity could be impossible enough, nonetheless the journalists must seek for the truth, facts, evidences, eliminating their own biases. If they do not like these things, they should search for other jobs.

At last recently the general people seem to know that SNS and the emotional writings, flashy pieces of marketing are only a passing wave. Journalism is a practical tool-like belief and agreement. If we abandon journalism, we will be inconvenient, what’s worse, we should be in a world of falsehood, distortion, and lies.
Then the Lord said to me, “The prophets are prophesying lies in my name. I have not sent them or appointed them or spoken to them. They are prophesying to you false visions, divinations, idolatries and the delusions of their own minds. (Jeremiah 14:14) (The end)