A journalist’s check on power

The journalists of the world have always had the purpose of serving the people of the public the truth.

It is an attribute that has remained stable and intact as the job of journalism has evolved with time.

For example, when the American revolution first began, the news of the British government’s unfairness was spread through colonial publications like wildfire. Those journalists and revolutionists had the right and duty to show the public how the King’s treatment at the time was unreasonable.

Now, journalists still continue this pathway and legacy of truth to be a check on the powerful in the world.

It can be clearly seen in the documentary “The Panama Papers” in which journalists from all around the world expose the wrongness of wealthy people and those in the government for offshore banking in order to avoid paying their taxes.

This all started when John Doe, the anonymous whistleblower, trusted that these journalists would not only spread the truth about the wrongs done by these people in power such as the prime minister of Iceland at that time or Donald Trump, but also that these journalists would do whatever it takes to make sure that the whistleblower’s identity would remain hidden.

Not many people realize that journalism can be a very dangerous job.

It requires a lot of trust between coworkers and the sources.

Many times journalists are reporting on subjects that could get them in deep trouble due to the power the people or businesses that they are reporting on have over them and the seriousness of the subject they are investigating.

People in power tend to want to keep and extend their power and wealth once they achieve it so when suddenly there is a threat to that, they are willing to do anything to hide the truth.

Whether it be having a lawsuit filed against them or the possibility of their life being at risk, journalists face constant threats when reporting on important news.

Another example of the danger journalists face is when in the movie “Spotlight” the corruption of the Catholic Church is displayed.

The Church was so keen on keeping its good reputation and power that rather than let the sexual predators lurking in their Church be exposed, they would rather try to sue and stop the Spotlight team from writing and coming out with their story.

It was through hard determination to spread the truth and expose the Church’s corruption that was able to get the team to successfully publish their story.

While “The Panama Papers” and “Spotlight” both are prime examples of why journalists’ jobs are so important today, there are constant reminders throughout everyone’s daily life.

Checks on power by journalists are needed now more than ever due to the influx of fake news organizations or accusations towards journalists of publishing fake news in the media.

There are hundreds of news organizations that make their living off of publishing false news or propaganda, which ends up harming credible journalists and their careers as well as the organizations that they work for.

Other times, credible journalists are accused of posting fake news by people in power, such as the current president, Donald Trump.

Trump has made it a part of himself and his presidency to accuse any news organization whatsoever of “fake news” when it harms or criticizes his character. In doing this, there are people who will genuinely believe his fake news claims and go along with his accusation of said fake news.

Then there is the general public’s opinion that now gets so confused about what is real or fake within the media that they no longer know who to believe anymore.

This creates multiple extra hurdles that journalists now have to overcome in order to make sure that their information is reaching the people of the public well and that their writing is extremely credible.

Journalists are now stepping up to speak out against fake news accusations in order to save their namesake as well as the stories that they write about.

While journalism may not seem like a hard job to others, being the people in charge of being a check on power across the globe can become difficult.

However, journalists of this time do what they can to ensure that the people are hearing the truth about others in power and that they are getting the information they rightfully deserve to know.