Journalists and Objectivity
In chapter 8 of his book, Wallace talks about the situation when facts do not matter; this chapter is interesting because he talks of Rush Limbaugh and how he is a journalist when it is beneficial and not one when it is not, “Rush loved to play both sides: he claimed the title of journalist only when it served him and denied it when he was accused of bending the truth” (Wallace). This quote is important because it talks of a common phenomenon among journalists. They are too loud about their career and role as journalists only when they are gaining something out of it, however, when it is time to face the repercussions of their wrongdoings. This exposes the myth of journalistic objectivity that Wallace was trying to expose in his book; Rush knew that one of the journalists under his wing was attacking women using finances provided by a third party. This is a condition that is still going on. Journalists lack objectivity and belong to the highest bidder; this has encouraged the spread of misinformation emanating from the same people destined to be protectors of the truth. It is better to pick a side and stick to it rather than jumping from one camp to another. Biasness blocks the eyes and mouths of journalists by blinding them from seeing things objectively and reporting them as they are. If journalists cannot handle their biases, then very soon people will have no use for them as they require to hear the truth, not what the journalist wants them to hear, their whole career is based on objectivity, and if they cannot maintain that, they are in the wrong career.
Works cited
Wallace, Lewis Raven. “The view from somewhere.” The View from Somewhere. University of Chicago Press, 2019.
Nicely done discussion of this text.