‘The creed of objectivity killed the news’ by Chris Hedges

Traditional media outlets can have a strange relationship with ‘the powerful’ that sometimes undermines journalistic values.  When dealing with powerful sources the relationship with the talent is often considered above the duty to report what is said.  

 An interview that TV news commentator Tucker Carlson conducted with English journalist Gerri Peev demonstrated this phenomenon at work within the American media.  Peev had published a statement made by an Obama staffer during the 2008 primary elections that the White House asked to be omitted from the record, after the fact. 

Author and columnist Chris Hedges has worked as a foreign correspondent in Central America, Africa, the Middle East and the Bulkans. This case demonstrates his disappointment with the traditional media’s propensity to pander to the elite.  Balanced argument is strong journalism, but what sometimes disguises itself as objectivity – a desire not to question the powerful – is simply unilluminating.

Anamaria Krunes is a Master of Global Communications student at La Trobe University.