“The duty of journalists is to tell the truth. Journalism means you go back to the actual facts, you look at the documents, you discover what the record is, and you report it that way.” — Noam Chomsky

In this digital era we have greater access to news sources, especially as citizen journalism has become more polarised thanks to the internet and multiple social media platforms. Undeniably, a lot of the information we know today is because technology allows citizens to record footage of events and share online.

Some vloggers and bloggers also share very useful information that we would not be privy to through traditional media outlets. Nonetheless, we know that with the absence of training in journalism there is a greater chance for misinformation to be passed on as the requisite due diligence may not be done.

What is more perplexing, though, is when the actual trained practitioners either blatantly contribute to infodemic — the rapid dissemination of unreliable information, which impedes the successful implementation of solutions — or fail to do the necessary investigative journalism to reliably inform the public on matters of national interest.

As a writer myself, and as a human being, it is understood that we will not always get it right. We will miss a few things here and there. But the credibility of certain journalists and media houses is called into question too frequently these days. The manner in which news is reported, the frequency of misleading headlines, and the characters that are targeted make us wonder if media houses have a particular agenda. The public often feels they do.

If media houses and some of our most esteemed journalists openly show their personal and political biases, who are we left to trust to get accurate information?

The way in which we write and report news contributes to the citizens’ outlook on issues affecting the country. Consequently, it would be unfortunate if an individual or situation were painted as being corrupt – Jamaicans’ favourite word – when the reality is far from being the truth.

As it is currently, lots of fallacies and half-truths are reported in the traditional media nowadays. Journalists fail to corroborate information. They fail to provide adequate context, which leaves room for speculation. The situation is worsened whenever the so-called academics, lawyers, and integrity and civil rights groups play on semantics to justify their partial reasoning simply because they are affiliated with either of the two major local political parties.

I currently teach an academic writing course at the University of Technology, Jamaica, and the more I delve into the course content – which is centred on argumentation and critical thinking – is the more I realise that critical thinking skills are alien to us. It is sad to say that many of us who are among the educated population, even with doctoral degrees, have low levels of critical thinking skills.

We fail to suspend our biased judgements even when the truth is confirmed. We fail to fact check information. We fail to carefully assess the content provided to us. But, again, we are products of our education, and we are also educated by the media and politicians on a daily basis. Even the information minister’s pronouncements and timing are sometimes questionable.

The call, again, is made to journalists to apply the training received at university. Editors, also, have an even greater responsibility as they are the gatekeepers on what is published on a daily basis.

I recently wrote a news item, and my editor sent me a list of questions to consider. I had to be back and forth with the individual that was being featured for three days because we had to verify the information from different sources. That is the level of rigour that the profession requires.

Under their editorial code of ethics and professionalism The Gleaner says it strives to “Get it first and get it right.” In other words, their rule is: Get it right, first. The Jamaica Observer, which uses the slogan ‘Always Ahead’, says that the company “takes pride and care in doing its due diligence to ensure that all published material is accurate, unbiased, fair, and free from defamation”.

We see here that our two major newspaper companies want to be the first to break news. However, is the news always right and is due diligence always done? We have to do better and raise the standard.

Since I am on the matter of journalism, let me hasten to add that the quality of grammar coming out of our media houses has significantly depreciated. Editors and proofreaders need to be reminded that the newspaper serves as a source of learning and they are cited in academic assignments as well.

Responsible journalism contributes to a responsible citizenry. Let us report the facts in the news and avoid “throwing shade” and creating unnecessary speculation. The news is not an opinionated column or an emotionally filled letter to the editor.

Oneil Madden is a PhD candidate in language sciences at Clermont Auvergne University, France. Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or oneil.madden@uca.fr.