Journalism and Politics
The part of Weber's essay that I found most intriguing was his description of the relation between journalism and politics. On the surface, there was the interesting revelation that newspaper articles at that time were anonymous, something I had never known, but there was also a respect for journalists in Weber's account that I have seldom encountered. Especially due to recent scandals about journalists inventing stories, I feel that there has been a growing disdain for the journalistic profession. Journalists are often regarded as pariah's and a blight on society, when in actuality they provide a valuable service. Weber argues that journalists are better informed and required to adhere to a higher standard than are most politicians. So why don't many journalists become politicians?
Of course, the current position of journalism is quite different than the one in Weber's day. Journalism is no longer an anonymous pursuit and the proliferation of tabloids and tabloid magazines masquerading as journalism (and paparazzi masquerading as journalists) has not helped the profession's reputation. Also, I believe that the loss of anonymity has, if anything, hurt the prospect for individuals to make the leap from journalist to outright politician. In anonymity it would, naturally, be difficult to establish your credentials as a political knowledgable. However, with your name/face attached to every piece you cover, you risk losing credibility by revealing your political views publically. Your journalistic career is likely to collapse under you before the political one is established.
posted by lennearb @ 5:45 PM
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