The truth is a confusing topic that makes people talk themselves in circles much of the time. Just like our good friends here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sShMA85pv8M
The video gives us a simple, but profound example. The question is who is on first? The truthful answer is deluded and lost in the confusion of Abbott and Costello. To Abbott the truth is one thing and to Costello the truth is another. Both are lost and confused even though they are both speaking their own truths.
What can a journalist do to make sure they are reporting the truth? Here are four ways that a journalist can stay truthful.
1. Stay objective
Staying objective is a key to being truthful in any situation. Being bias to one side of the story or the other can cause any story to turn into a Max Hall interview. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvLdPk-H94Y You can never be truly objective to a story, but you owe it to your audience to stay as objective as possible. Allow your viewers to form their own opinions.
2. Really dig to find the facts
The truth almost never lies on the surface. You have to dig and at times that may mean that you lose friends and make enemies. The truth must be shared in order for people to make the right decisions. See http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/onpolitics/watergate/chronology.htm for two of the greatest examples of digging for the truth, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein. Great journalists put the truth first, and everything else second.
3. Know your subject and your audience
The truth does not change, but what matters to your audience does. A knowledge of what you are reporting and who you are reporting it to can make a huge difference in how the truth is perceived. The truth to BYU students may be very different than the truth to a Notre Dame student because of their differences in belief. Any weakness in the knowledge of your subject will be noticed by an educated audience, and your credibility as a journalist will be destroyed.
4. Tell stories without a the mumbling mess
The bigger the mess the more difficult it will be to uncover the truth. You should keep your reporting as clear as possible. Your audience will love how easy it is to get their news without digging through a mess and trying to decipher what the truth is. For example look at the difference between the mess http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W45DRy7M1no, and the clarity http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7swApIsR6Q of these two reports. The mess of one leaves us wondering what happened, while the clarity of the other makes it easy for us to understand exactly what happened.
As journalists our career relies on our ability to see, record and report the truth.
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