The Scoop: Journalism is in Crisis
- sjberger5
- Mar 22
- 5 min read
Throughout our history, writing has been the key element to exchanging and passing on stories, knowledge, and values. Journalism in particular, has served as the backbone of informing change and amplifying voices to the public. Where there were once typewriters and “Dear Sally” advice columns, there are now public forums, blogs, and social media pages devoted to any niche topic you could want to learn about. In an era where misinformation spreads on public platforms like wildfire, it is hard to know what information is trustworthy. For writers nowadays, the ability to adapt to our current political climate has been a challenge to say the least, where a tool that used to be used to empower the public has been turned against itself. In order to fully understand why we are facing such unprecedented times in news, we must look at the full picture of why and how we have ended up in an era where political powers get to dictate who gets to cover what media, going against the idea of a free-press and the collective trust of the public. By looking at the fascinating past of where press printing began, to the way it evolved to today’s massive media influx, we can gain a better understanding of how our trust as a society has faced a huge decline in recent years.
Past and Present: The Reinvention of Journalism ✍️
Since the development of the early printing press, the American Revolution prompted the beginning of a news boom. When independent newspapers and reports emerged in the 19th century, media was able to develop into entertainment. In a time where the majority of people relied on the routine of getting the daily paper, journalists possessed the power to persuade and to grab the attention of anyone willing to read. In the 1950’s however, new advancements including public radio developed to capture the attention of American families and ensure a routine broadcasting of culture and entertainment, as well as local news and world affairs.
Once we reached the 21st century, the development of the internet and television split the once single-stream view of media into tons of new perspectives and channels. From this point on, the internet became an endless source of information, where any person can assume authorship in any public forum, and where the news cycle moves faster than ever before. In order to adapt to the digital age, and the decline of delivered newspaper subscriptions, news companies began publishing content online, for free. This big development began in 2008, and according to Pew Research Center, “Newspaper newsroom employment fell 57% between 2008 and 2020, from roughly 71,000 jobs to about 31,000. At the same time, the number of digital-native newsroom employees rose 144%”. This huge loss in writers was counterbalanced by an influx of television and broadcasting employees being hired, as a natural next step in America’s digital narrative.
Covid’s Big Impact 😷
In the uncertainty of the Covid years, outbreaks and word from the CDC was the news we waited for daily. Coverage of the pandemic had Americans frantic for news on what was in store for the outbreaks. Following the pandemic, researchers at Pew Research Center conducted a survey to find that, “two-thirds of Democrats (66%) say the media’s COVID-19 coverage has been largely accurate, just about three-in-ten Republicans (31%) agree. And
the divide is even larger between Republicans who describe themselves as conservative and Democrats who describe themselves as liberal”. Despite this, the larger public feels more confidently about their trust in journalists, saying that “about half (48%) have at least a “fair amount” of confidence in journalists to act in the best interest of the public”. This great divide in feelings about public forums created a distrust following Covid, despite the majority of people reporting trust in their new sources. You’ll note that Pew’s research also followed the political affiliations of those who responded to the survey, correlating the extremeness of their political affiliation with distrust in media sources, pushing journalism into the category of topics that continue to develop controversy and distrust.
News becoming News: The Current state of Press Freedom 😵💫
For generations, the WHCA (White House Correspondents’ Association) has entrusted its journalists access to the president, carefully working within and around politics to inform, without bias, and with total freedom. Recently, the Trump administration has made the decision to seize power over the WHCA and transfer power to the White House press team, which privately manages which press can record Trump. This decision has overthrown decades of work for the public and challenges the entire idea of “freedom of press”. By quietly adjusting these roles, the current administration is actively disrupting the trust in independent media, and creating a purposeful favoritism towards government perspectives. In an interview, The Guardian notes, “The WHCA president, Eugene Daniels, said the move “tears at the independence of a free press in the United States”. Rightful criticism of this decision has been heard through the journalism community, noting the dangers of this action, and calling out the damage this choice will create for the future of all journalistic integrity. Currently, the biggest concerns within journalists is how this policy could more deeply divide the way we see media outlets, and how those who criticize the administration will become more ostracized, while those in support will continue to gain preferential treatment. This risk to the public creates a completely biased media that will limit the public’s exposure to a diverse selection of viewpoints, and create a “self-fulfilling prophecy” for so many that believe in the strength of this decision by our current administration. A free and independent press is what stabilizes democracy, and without true access to information, we will only find ourselves deeper within a web of intractable blame. In one of The Guardian’s notes in their article about this topic, the editor confidently adds a section headed, “Why you can rely on The Guardian not to bow to Trump- or anyone”. I encourage anybody who has lost all hope to read this statement, and to know that the fight for our freedom of press has not ended, in fact it has just begun. Betsy Reed, the editor of this article encourages us to not turn away in the face of the coming months, but to encourage those around you not to bow down to billionaires, but to entrust your research-funded organizations to provide you with the facts. If you only took one thing from this article it would be, “do not be afraid to stand up for what is write 🙌”.
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Your article highlights the dangers posed very well. These are things that we as a people should be fighting tooth and nail for because they are fading faster then a lot of people realize. It's a bleak thing to think about, but many US Senators and Congress officials are raising awareness which gives me hope. On another note, it's also interesting to hear what people from other countries think about our state of affairs.
This was such a good read! One of my favorite details that you added was the emojis for each subheading. I am someone who finds images inviting, so this helped draw me to your blog post. I remember hearing that the Trump Administration gets to now choose all the reporters allowed in the White House, and I feel like this is really telling about how all aspects of media are controlled to some degree now.
I can definitely see the passion that's gone into this, making for a great read. I think trust in the press is really what defines so much; It is consumed by so many people that even the wrong things can be spread, especially when it can be rather negative. However, this segment of the overall discussion cannot discount the rest of the journalism population that goes through so much to get the information that the public truly needs. I really liked how you covered the history of press, too - it must have been an incredibly different experience. Now, we must be very careful with what we consume (especially because of the internet and its generative nature) but not so…
Very interesting read! I agree with the danger that our freedom of press is in. Last semester, I took a journalism class and this was a big topic of discussion. Not only is the overall trust in media going down, but there is a clear division between parties. As you stated, republicans seem to trust media much less than other parties. This division has always interested me, and continues to do so as the Trump administration continues to put further limits on the press. I think adding these certain details in your piece was very effective. Especially concerning the impact that COVID has had. The future of the press is unknown, which is a scary thing!
I completely agree—freedom of the press is dying. Our inalienable human rights to express ourselves—whether through journalism, speech, or writing—are effectively gone (I believe they’ve been gone for some time, but that’s beside the point). It will not be long before our rights to free speech, the press, and expression are completely eradicated—it's terrifying. I really like the quote—the pun, too—that you included at the end of your blog; we have to start standing up for what the United States was founded on: the freedom to speak out and advocate for what is right.