Are news organizations and journalists operating with integrity?

This is a loaded question in that information being reported by many but not all news organizations and journalists are not living up to their responsibilities to the public. There are many reasons why the above statement is true.

The first and foremost responsibility of any news organization or journalists, and this includes any individual who writes a blog or article, is to accurately report the facts, all the facts. This sadly does not exist within all media sources. The public deserves honest reporting regardless of who is providing the information. It is true and we know it that some media sources have a political agenda and if a news item does not meet their political agenda it never gets reported. This kind of attitude is doing a disservice to the public in general. Information reported during the campaigns of the candidates for President and other offices on the ballot which were both inaccurate and incomplete saw a sound rejection by the public across the country.

Honesty and reliability of many news organizations seems to have gone by the wayside in many cases and this is wrong. This however, is not the case for all news organizations and journalists as some take their responsibility to the general public seriously. The job of the media is to completely inform the public about events that warrant coverage which take place on a daily basis. Ignoring events or information which does not meet their political agenda which the public has a right to know is wrong.

The credibility of news organizations and some journalists is turning the public off and as a result some media sources have seen a reduction is subscribers or viewers. This fact is relates to something that does not get the coverage it should. The public knows who they can trust or not trust. Trust is a big deal in the world as we know it and if any media source loses the trust of the general public like the election they will ask themselves what did we do or not do.

Another example of misinformation by the media and those who report information through a variety of communication tools is the negativity of the news in some cases. Negativity did not work this election cycle as witnessed by the election results. The public became smarter in determining what information is real and what information is not. The term fake news has been used recently and with good reason. Operating with integrity for a news organization or anyone who writes and comments on events of the day can result in damaging the reputation of an organization or individual. When a reputation is damaged it is difficult to shake off that damage, if ever. People need to be able to trust their sources of information and if they do not they go to a source they can trust.

The resources on the Internet are a blessing in helping us to determine if a news organization or a journalist is telling the whole truth. Reporting fake news or distorted news will be discovered by the public through the resources for news now available with the technology we have today. Integrity is important in any organization but when it is a media source it can be critical. When we as individuals cater to a business and we do not get the respect we deserve as a customer that business will suffer as friends tell friends how they are treated and as a result business income will and has dropped for some companies. There is too much competition in the world today and if we are not satisfied with what we are getting from one source be it a product or service or the news we choose to go somewhere else for our needs. This is something media sources must realize if they are to be a reliable news source.

There are many fine broadcasters and journalists as I have previously mentioned that take their responsibilities seriously and it is those individuals from which we will get reliable and complete information from which to make a decision. The main function of any news organization or individual reporting the news is to present the facts honestly and completely. This involves letting the individuals making up their own minds about issues of the day not presenting inaccurate facts to try to influence or indoctrinate individuals to their political philosophy.

I have talked about the information that we see in various news sources and the question is not what they are reporting but what they are not reporting to the public. We as individuals and voters have a right to have information that we feel impacts our voting decisions and our lives in general. It is not up to the media or it should not be up to the media to determine what information on which they broadcast or report. If a news event that we know has occurred and a media source is not covering it we should voice our displeasure as to the omission in their coverage of events. This is not the only problem.

There are in many cases coverage of events which do not warrant being put before the public while other stories are ignored. The media needs to get their act together and live up to the responsibilities they have to the public in general. One important point to remember in any business if they are not providing what the public wants a new source will and their base of supporters will diminish and will hurt their bottom line. The media is in business to make money but if they turn off the public that they need to survive they become obsolete. Several media sources that have existed for years across the country have closed their doors. If the media of today who are not providing accurate, reliable and complete reporting of the facts there will be others in the future. There is so much competition these days that to survive media sources need to provide not only what the public wants but what they should.