Journalists too lazy to do proper research

Submitted by B.N.Gururaj (India), Apr 2, 2009 at 23:43

It would seem that journalism is dictated by the immediate need to fill the columns. It seems that no serious study preceeds either on account of laziness of the journalists, or on account of stuffing the paper with material and beat the deadline. Perhaps, it is more a case of intellectual laziness, where a writer finds it more convenient to use well known labels rather than analyse the issues.

When it comes to Asiatic religions like Islam or Hinduism or Buddhism, the language and terminology also seem to pose problem. Therefore, the easy way out for a journalist is to take the handouts given in a press conference and write their piece, or as the host themselves for inputs. Otherwise, one cannot imagine writing stories admiring Hijab! It would seem that one of the basic qualities of a journalist should be to view everything with a healthy degree of skepticism.

In any case, I am curious to know how does a publisher decide that so and so would be their reporter on all the religious matters. How does a publisher decide that a given journalist is competent to report on religious matters.In which religions should they have at least working knowledge? Shouldn't the journalists have some academic background for embarking upon such jobs? If political commentators start reporting or writing about everything, the output is bound to be tainted.

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