What a Journalist Is

              Throughout the semester and looking back at my first blog post, I have discovered that I have learned as much about what a journalist is as I have what a journalist is not. Let’s start with what a journalist is not (that way we can end on a better note of what a journalist is.)

What a journalist is not:

 I used to view a journalist as a world traveler and adventurer who spends their time investigating exciting stories and interviewing high profile and influential people. Not to downplay the life of a journalist, but I now laugh at what I thought it was like. A journalist’s role is not to be an activist or to “make the world better” by screaming their opinion in everything they write. A journalist has a much bigger and broader role.

 Now to talk about what that role is:

                Even though not very many journalists have the adventurous life, they do play a very important role in society. We have constantly talked about the watchdog role that a journalist plays and have referred to is as “the fourth estate” or another check on the government; a way to monitor the powerful and help be a voice of the people. Their loyalty is to the citizens and their main objective is to provide information that enables the people to be free and self-governing. If you ask me, that is an honorable role to play.

 

The Society of Professional Journalists does a good job of difining what a journalist is in their

 SPJ Code of Ethics.