622 Quotes About Journalism

The Society of Professional Journalists believes that "public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy." If that is so, can justice or democracy be secure in a media world where public enlightenment has been supplanted by the superficial?

What the f-f-f... What's that supposed to mean?" the reporter sputtered. The TV cameraman behind him was laughing. TV people ranked radio people, so laughing was all right."What's 'f-f-f' supposed to mean?" Lester asked. He turned away and pointed to a woman wearing glasses the size of compact discs. "You.""What precautions should women in the Twin Cities take?" She had an improbably smooth delivery, with great round O's, as though she were reading for a play.

There is a certain concentrated, avid-for-blood look that appears on the faces of reporters on the trail of a very big story that you'd have to visit the big cat house at the zoo to see duplicated in its primal state. From the look on Brenda's face, if a tiger was standing between her and this story right now, the cat would soon have a tall-journalist-sized hole in him.

Elie Wiesel says that neutrality only helps the oppressor, never the victim. And I think you can apply that to journalism.

I swear it only hit me then, with full conscious force, who the real villains of this piece had been from start to finish…those lying, cancerous dogs of the mainstream media!

Despair is the central part of the psychopathology. For the handmaiden of gossip is treachery:

Reporters go through four stages in a war zone. In the first stage, you’re Superman, invincible. In the second, you’re aware that things are dangerous and you need to be careful. In the third, you conclude that math and probability are working against you. In the fourth, you know you’re going to die because you’ve played the game too long. I was drifting into stage three.

Fearlessness can be its own form of power.

Fully objective journalism isn’t really possible. Every word choice is subjective, tells one thing and ignores an alternative. A good journalist can only do the best they can do—sort of like a good person.