Absence of malice
After watching Absence of Malice I realized how much the industry has changed. Obviously now we have more technology, but it is funny to see how a newsroom appeared some 20 years ago. Although a newsroom has changed and journalism is always experiencing changes, one thing that remains the same is the investigative work and backgruond information need to be completed before an interview as well as double checking your facts after an interview. In Absence of Malice Sally Field wrote several stories without talking or interviewing people to make sure the information was accurate. I thought this movie was good and interesting. It shows people what should not be done and the consequences that can arise if a reporter doesn't follow the rules.
Labels: Movie
posted by Ryan Hughes at
1:50 PM
12 Comments:
Ryan,
I agree with you that this movie serves as a good example of "what not to do when reporting." I think we can all take a lesson and be sure to interview at least a couple more people connected to our stories to assure accuracy.
-Nick
March 25, 2007 at 2:48 PM
I agree with you that Sally Field's character was a lousy reporter because she did mess up so many times. The fact that the industry has changed so much is also very true.
March 25, 2007 at 5:55 PM
This comment has been removed by the author.
March 26, 2007 at 8:30 AM
I really liked how you focused on how the industry has changed. I noticed it throughout the film, but it was not something that I really sat down to think about it. But now that you mention it, it really is amazing how things have changed so much in the past two decades.
March 26, 2007 at 8:31 AM
I also agree that the industry has changed drastically in the past 20 years. Even though the movie shows "what not to do when reporting" it is a good starting point to see how the industry operates/used to operate.
March 26, 2007 at 12:50 PM
It is very true that while journalism as a whole may change, its ethical expectations tend to remain much more constant. Subsequently, journalists must always keep this in mind when reporting a story. If they do not, they will likely be subjected to punishment and/or job loss.
March 26, 2007 at 2:35 PM
You are right, the industry has changed a lot as far as technology goes. Also, you also point out that getting the background information and a variety of sources does not change. I'm sure we will see many more changes technologically in journalism but the background and sources will always remain the same. You have a good viewpoint.
March 26, 2007 at 3:06 PM
The field of journalism has certainly changed a great deal in terms of technology but you're right, investigative reporting and backgrounding remains the same. While the technology has changed, the principles remain unchanged.
March 26, 2007 at 4:34 PM
I agree, no matter what age you are living in you must keep proper ethics in mind. However, ethics vary from society to society so it is important to use good judgment.
March 26, 2007 at 8:48 PM
The technology change is amazing. Still, as I commented on another blog, it's amazing to me that the mistakes shown in this movie are still being made today in so many newsrooms.
One of the technology changes I witnessed as a reporter/editor is the passing of the typewriter. When I started in journalism, we typed our stories on yellow or beige paper. We had to include three carbons (blue sticky paper that was used to make impression on the next pages). It was crazy when you had to make corrections. I can honestly tell you that I thought electric typewriters were heaven!!
March 27, 2007 at 6:25 AM
Being that me and you have come from the same school, I find it funny that our comments are so similiar, and base upon the same general thought of journalism changing. I think that was one oversight of a lot of people in our class, that journalism at one point in time was a very dirty profession, and now has had to remove itself from the dirt that it once published.
March 27, 2007 at 9:54 AM
I have so say I was set aback by the lack of technology in the movie, but it's easy to forget as members of the Internet age that every thing was once MUCH more simple. However, one thing that doesn't change is the human aspect and the skills used to report and write a story, something SAlly Field obviously lacked.
March 28, 2007 at 10:10 AM
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