- What are the three most important core values you think journalists must have in today’s world? Why?
I think the most the important three core values must have in today’s world are independence, courage and persistence. These values are vital to working journalists today’s changing media landscape.
Courage is needed in journalism to ask the hard questions, to challenge the status quo, cast light on the powerful and hold them accountable to the public. The best journalists dare to tell the stories that would remain in the dark. They give a voice to the voiceless, playing a critical role exposing human rights abuses. Courage allows journalists to go where others will not in search of stories often in dangerous situations.
Independence is vital value to a journalist and the people who consume journalistic work. In this current climate, independent journalism is more important than ever where journalists must be conscious of maintaining an independent mind-set and refraining from adopting a group-think mentality or a mainstream narrative. Independently minded journalists investigate the story, collect the facts and present them free of external influence or pressure. Journalists can’t be objective if they aren’t independent.
A great deal of persistence required in journalism. Journalists encounter many obstacles as part of their jobs, it takes a dedicated journalist to keep persisting in the face of adversity. They may face dead ends in stories, cancelled interviews, changes in the direction stories, people unwilling participate in stories and issues contacting interviewees. Journalism graduates must persist in one of the competitive job markets.
- How can those values be useful in approaching digital tools we have today to produce good journalism?
Persistence and courage are the two most applicable and useful values for approaching new digital tools. Courage is needed to use unfamiliar digital tools in foreign situations. By having the courage to try and use these tools unfamiliar situations journalists can open new possibilities and to view stories in a different light. Persistence is needed to persevere in the face of difficulties and to see the possibilities digital tools allow in storytelling.
