Purpose Of Journalism

Guaranteeing all the freedoms

 in 1948, the united nations said in article 19 of the universal declaration of human rights that “freedom of opinion and expression” implies the right to “seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers(boundaries).”

 Guaranteeing human dignity

Unesco’s constitution says the unrestricted pursuit of objective truth is indispensable to human dignity and freedom. Another objective of journalism is hold opposing views, committed to reporting reality as they see it, in an independent manner.

Promoting democracy

In democracies, independent journalism  may generate political apathy, also  journalists are neutralized

Journalism’s first obligation is to the truth

 journalism want to seek “a practical and functional form of truth. This “journalistic truth” is a process that begins with the professional discipline of assembling and verifying facts.journalists should be as transparent as possible about sources and methods so audiences can make their own assessment of the information. Journalists often describe the essence of their work as finding and presenting “the facts” and also “the truth about the facts.”

Its first loyalty is to citizens

Transparency signals the journalist’s respect for the audience. It allows the audience to judge the validity of the information, the process by which it was secured and the motives and biases of the journalist providing it.the journalist’s job is to provide information in such a way that people can assess it and then make up their own minds what to think. By giving the audience the background on how you arrived at a certain conclusion, you allow them to replicate the process for themselves.

 Its essence is a discipline of verification

Being impartial or neutral is not a core principle of journalism. Journalists were free of bias. Personal and cultural biases would not undermine the accuracy of the work. The method is objective, not the journalist.  Seeking out multiple witnesses, disclosing as much as possible about sources, or asking various sides for comment, all signal such standards. This discipline of verification is what separates journalism from other forms of communication such as propaganda, advertising, fiction, or entertainment.

Its practitioners must maintain an independence 

Independence is a cornerstone of reliability. A journalist should not seduced by sources, intimidated by power, or compromised by self-interest. He should speak from an independence of spirit and an open-mindedness and intellectual curiosity that helps the journalist see beyond his or her own class or economic status, race, ethnicity, religion, gender or ego. Journalists must avoid straying into arrogance, elitism (superiority), isolation or nihilism (negativity, (pessimisam).

It must serve as an independent monitor of power

Journalism has to serve as watchdog over those whose power and position most affect citizens. It may also offer voice to the voiceless. This includes reporting on successes as well as failures.

It must provide a forum for public criticism and compromise

The news media are common carriers of public discussion, and this responsibility forms a basis for special privileges that news and information providers receive from democratic societies.

Journalism should also attempt to fairly represent varied viewpoints and interests in society and to place them in context rather than highlight only the conflicting fringes of debate. Accuracy and truthfulness also require that the public discussion not neglect points of common ground or instances where problems are not just identified but also solved.

It must strive to keep the significant interesting and relevant

Journalism is storytelling with a purpose. It should do more than gather an audience or catalogue the important. It must balance what readers know they want with what they cannot anticipate but need.quality is measured both by how much a work engages its audience and enlightens it.

 

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