Journalism as a Public Forum

I absolutely believe journalists should provide a public forum and a marketplace of ideas. Freedom of the press is essential to democracy, and in turn, the press should use that freedom to promote democracy and public involvement. We can observe several aspects of modern society where journalism has become much more of an open discussion, rather than a writer merely relating the facts. These aspects include blogs, news integration in Twitter and Facebook, and even the comment sections on news articles.

Here we can see the author a news story inviting the audience to respond.

 

In the Republican primaries, several candidates fielded questions in a virtual Twitter "debate," signaling a shift in the country's culture regarding politics and interaction with candidates. Whereas the press had previously held the power to question candidates and report on their positions, the changing technological landscape has allowed the citizens a much more involved role in government. Journalists would be best served to acknowledge this shift of power, and invite an atmosphere of public involvement in their work. A stronger citizen presence in the news means a stronger democracy.