The purpose of journalism

The purpose of journalism

Investigation reporting deals with issues and condition rather than incidents and events. It requires more documentation than a lot of the run of the mill work. It takes more patience and persistence. A reporter is tied up with records.

THE WORKING journalist and other newspaper employees (condition of services) and miscellaneous provision amendment act was passed to amend the working journalist act from time to time. This act was brought into existence to regulate the working condition of the working journalist and to ensure proper wages and stability of employment. The need was felt to regulate in the interest of protecting the freedom of speech and independence of the journalist. The significant aspect of this law is that an independent wage board is envisaged to be constituted for fixing a just and reasonable salary for the working journalist and to make it a statutory obligation of the management to pay it without allowing any defence on the basis of economic viability of the media organisation.

The basic purpose of journalism has always been the same, to hold a mirror to society, however ugly may be the sight.

Investigation reporting deals with issues and condition rather than incidents and events. It requires more documentation than a lot of the run of the mill work. It takes more patience and persistence. A reporter is tied up with records. It is like putting together a crossword puzzle. It takes time. It requires more money. Investigative reporting normally means that the facets are not lying there on the table. They are not readily available, there will be obstacles and there will be obstacles of various sorts lying in the way. It is a digging assignment. There is no opining in truly investigative reporting. It just resembles a scientific approach.

Griffith described the role of journalist in just one sentence ‘discovery is his job’.
Investigative journalism has to necessarily take the help of surreptitious methods and intrusive operations. Without intruding into the domains of wrongdoers and surreptitiously securing the documents or key information, the scandals can’t be exposed. Scam hunting, being a very important component of investigative reporting, is an essential feature of any media organ to establish its credibility and readership.

Well, ethics of media always come into clash with the investigative needs of media. However, for keeping up the professional standards and to serve the objectives of journalism, the media persons are expected to value and follow the ethical norms. Ethics are not totally based on the morals alone. In it, there are legal rights issues also. Hence, it is essential to know the ethical and legal dimension of media as a profession and institution.

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