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Journalists face a trying process when writing a news story—particularly when the topic is polarizing, scandalous or controversial.
Depending on the deadline, a morning, afternoon, four days or four months may be spent interviewing sources on a crackling cell phone while frantically writing down the framework of quotes in the most exacting ways.
By the time the writer has completed the painstaking process of transcribing interviews, forming the nut graph (the graph that lays out the point of the story) and—most excruciating of all—concocting the wittiest of ledes (the intro), the reporter has become an expert on the topic at hand.
The song "Crosseyed and Painless" is track two on the Talking Heads' album Remain in Light. (Courtesy of the Talking Heads)
As I write this, the Talking Heads song “Crosseyed and Painless” echoes in my mind as I am repeatedly reminded that: “Facts all come with points of view/facts don’t do what I want them to/facts just twist the truth around.”
The most time-consuming element of a (good) journalist’s job is verifying and fact-checking the claims made by sources. Active reporting requires balancing the comments made by sources while remaining aware of the source’s agenda.
Ideally, by the time the news shows up on Google Reader or front porches, the falsehoods have been identified and the “real” story is confirmed.
After going through these steps to report, organize and write a story, I have developed some perspective on the demands of sound journalism.
What I love most about journalism is how it gives me the opportunity to gain inside knowledge outside of my experience or education. I have become informed about topics ranging from the political climate of Colorado’s higher education system to what goes into cooking gluten-free cupcakes in California because of the stories I’ve written.
Although I don’t have much of an opinion on the cupcakes, I have developed a strong opinion regarding higher education in Colorado. Journalists often develop an opinion about socially relevant issues after covering a story. Expecting an unbiased account, when an educated analysis is available (and more beneficial), seems inconsistent with the principles of journalism—to inform the public while adhering to standards of transparency.
The greatest paradox of journalism is that a reporter is expected to become a quasi-expert on the topic she is writing about, and then objectively tell those stories to the public. She is in many ways obligated to remove her reporting experience from the writing process.
Sometimes there is a right and wrong to an issue. While reporting, I have found myself in many situations where one side of the conflict carries more weight than the other—where providing equal emphasis to both perspectives seems to violate the integrity of the truth.
Journalists are expected to sacrifice a lot for their craft. Depending upon the publication, reporters may not be permitted to sign petitions, participate in protests or discuss their political and religious affiliations. Reporters commonly abstain from voting for fear of appearing biased and in turn violating their credibility.
In general, reporters are advised not to participate as U.S. citizens. The irony remains that journalists are often the citizens most informed on the idiosyncrasies of politics and therefore most eligible to cast an educated vote.
Instead of striving to remain falsely objective when I write a story, I seek transparency in my coverage. By readily acknowledging any of my existing biases or opinions, I am able to be conscious of my word choice and self-edit, so I can present a balanced representation of an issue and not immediately default to the perspective that I feel is most valid.
Stories in the CU Independent go through three rounds of editing after a reporter turns in a final draft to maintain an accurate and balanced portrayal of the news at CU. We are a learning publication, meaning that our writers, editors and reporters are not professional journalists, but nonetheless we hold ourselves to professional journalistic standards. We also have readers to help us check our writing as we work our way toward daily improvement.
A passion for narration, storytelling and truth drives our journalism. I maintain that it is better to have reporters covering stories on topics they care about than topics to which they are indifferent. In many cases, the reporter learns that an objective portrayal is less valuable to the community than an educated analysis of the issue.
I am a journalist not because of my indifference to the world, but because of my need to be constantly engaged with it.
Contact CU Independent Editor-in-Chief Sara Kassabian at Sara.kassabian@colorado.edu.
