Beyond Belief

As the world changes, we adapt. If we fail, clients pay the price.

Long ago in a classroom far away, an instructor gave an assignment to a group of fresh-eyed journalism students: Write a news story about the arrest, trial, and execution of Jesus.

The challenge wasn’t writing a story. Presumably, that was a no-brainer. It was to test whether students could put aside their personal beliefs, separate facts from rumors and speculation, weed out those with an ax to grind, and report dispassionately and even-handedly.

 

The results were predictable. Most fell short.

They couldn’t detach from belief systems they’d been taught since the cradle, and that colored their version of events. A few succeeded, and it was a harbinger of how they’d excel in their careers.

It was a different age, journalistically. There was a commitment to ferreting out facts and keeping yourself outside the story. It was almost a religion, and violation was idolatry.

It was before Watergate spawned a generation who fancied themselves investigative journalists à la Woodward and Bernstein, but fell short because they were inexperienced. This soon devolved into “advocacy journalism,” then into opinion-in-lieu-of-news — both of which persist, often alongside “news” that really isn’t news and isn’t even relevant.

 

The prevalence of advocacy and opinions masquerading as news is painfully apparent.

What about irrelevance? Consider a recent teaser for a nightly TV news program: “How often do men change their bed sheets? Less than you think. We’ll tell you more on the news at 11.”

There’s a tendency for all of us to believe things were better when we were there, when our hand was on the tiller.

But the world changes, and we must adapt. This is no less true with the media. Some journalists can be worked with professionally and effectively. The difficulty is with those who care more about opinions and less about facts. You must differentiate between them in a heartbeat. If you fail, you put your client in peril.

 

For a deeper glimpse into our world, see our book on Amazon, A Lawyer’s Guide to Crisis PR: Protecting Your Clients In & From the Media.

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You can reach Roger Gillott and Eden Gillott directly at 310-396-8696.

 

Gillott Communications is a Los Angeles-based public relations firm that specializes in high-stakes Crisis & Reputation Management with more than 50 years of expertise in strategic communications, corporate public relations, and working with the media.

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