And sometimes the two are the same. Good factual reporting can and should guide opinion and/or acceptance of a bigger fact. It’s why we have freedom of the press. And good factual reporting is most effective when it is couched in a way that people accept as factual. Jump to the conclusion too fast, and you risk your biggest revelation (opinion or fact) being dismissed as uninformed opinion.
Literally the opposite of what you are suggesting they should do. The only thing people can accept as factual this way is that there is doubt or uncertainty. And you can count on racists to pounce on that and create their own safe-feeling sweetened factoids to persuade the masses… and all you can do to argue with that is to say “according to some people that might be wrong.” No, the more this discussion goes on the more convinced I am of my own position, honestly.
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Neither would I. But you barely have to complete your first sentence it’s pretty obvious whoever did it was racist. The time it takes for people to put 2 and 2 together in that case is measured in milliseconds. No need for consensus since the few who would quibble are probably of the same cloth.
Alternately, take Donald Trump. I’ve heard enough to feel he’s a racist. But what would happen if reporters explicitly called him racist? Those in the public that already believe wouldn’t care. Those that don’t would avoid those reporters and news channels. So news agencies avoid explicitly calling him racist and instead enumerate his racist behavior.
Which is why news organizations issue, and update, guidelines.
By couching in a way people accept as factual, I mean using actual verifiable facts. He said this (roll tape). He sent a letter saying that (show letter). He voted this way (public record). People tend to accept those as facts. Those that don’t tend to look stupid.
What’s with this “according to some people that might be wrong” stuff? The tape? The letter? The public record?
Lay out the facts that point to a conclusion. Once people are accepting of that conclusion, you can treat it as fact. Treat it as a fact too soon, and you are less effective. It might be milliseconds, it might be years. It’ll never be everybody accepting it. It’s a judgement call. Which is why NBC has a news standards department. To help in making the judgement.
I’m still glad that NBC changed their mind on this guidance in the end.
“We revised our guidance on Rep. Steve King’s comments. It is fair to characterize King’s comments as ‘racist,’ and point out that he has a history of racist comments, and the context can be shared that others hold that view as well.”
It would have been silly for a news organization to never call racism, racism, in their own voice.
But despite growing attention toward his racist turn, …
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Sounds like you’re saying that sight alone is the only measure of truth. I’ve never seen Vivaldi’s music yet it is filled with beauty. Springtime lilacs and honeysuckle produce a scent that lifts my spirit yet I’ve never seen the scent. A babys smile is a thing of joy and lemon make me pucker up when I eat though I’ve never seen the taste. I don’t really need to see a thing to know the truth of it.
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Fox News is merely telling Trumpsters where the boundaries lie.
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