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Newspaper journalism today is quite different from what it was ten or twenty years ago. Instead of objective stories with detailed analyses, we now see stories full of exaggerations. In this essay I will first of all point out three standards of being a responsible press, and then show the incorrect stories and consider the arguments of some so-called impartial stories. I shall conclude by arguing that Hong Kong newspapers mislead people.
There are three standards define how an ethical press is - objectivity, fairness, and accuracy. Columbia University emeritus journalism professor Melvin Mencher claims Objectivity should avoid bias and sensationalism or presenting impartial information. Fairness is also advocated by John V. Pavlik. He says,’ fairness, that is, providing balanced coverage reflecting all sides of an issue.’ (John V. Pavlik,2001:93) It is clearly that accuracy is a must. As John V. Pavlik says,’ accuracy, that is, getting the facts right and representing a story completely. (John V. Pavlik,2001:93) these three standards.
In the following, there are examples and statistic. They can prove Hong Kong newspapers can not fulfil the above standards and therefore, Hong Kong Journalism is misleading people.
It is dismayed that the propensity of the local media to create sensation and stir up sentiment. Kelly, a famous star in Hong Kong, said the media are exaggerating CD selliong reports. She even said,’ You know what it is - this situation is just blown up.’ This example shows Hong Kong journalism have gone in their unscrupulous use of strategies designed to satisfy the public’s desire for sensationalism. It is regret that this practice is eroding the public's faith in the media.
Fairness is also an important standard that it should be complied with. Nevertheless, Sunny Wong had expressed his voice in South China Morning Post. He said,’ I am worried, however, about our media, which seem to be selective about the facts they report’ (Sunny Wong,South China Morning Post,EDT16, EDT, Letters) He claimed former chief executive Tung Chee-wah had awarded an honorary degree in Hong Kong University of Science and Technology ceremony. A small group of students booed as the degree was conferred. He believed the applause largely had drowned out the booing. But all that the press reported the next day was the booing. Obviously journalists have taken sides. Distortion of reality of the stories is inconsistent with the objectivity.
Accuracy is something that the reporter should collect facts from as many reliable sources as possible. An event may be reported as a fact if there are two or more independent eyewitnesses to it. It is unlucky that unverified news is often published. A survey conducted by Hong Kong University has shown that 71 percent of Hong Kong people are satisfied with the degree of press freedom. However, 68 percent of Hong Kong people believed Hong Kong newspapers are abusing the freedom of the press and it is believed that the media is irresponsible. Most Hong Kong people think Hong Kong newspapers have reported unverified news. The facts of the stories are not right and the stories are not represented completely. This statistic shows Hong Kong newspapers are not accurate in the hearts of most of Hong Kong people. It is no doubt that journalism is misleading people.
Some people argue that some newspapers such as Mingpao, Singtao and Ta Kung Pao are famous for impartial writing. However, this good name is no longer suitable for use. Mingpao was criticized for giving an incorrect account of incident by Independent Commission Against Corruption on March,2007. Moreover, some scholars said Singtao had concealed the real motive of the incidents now. It seems that we no longer see any objective articles in the near future.
To conclude, I believe Hong Kong Newspapers are misleading people. They cannot fulfil the standards – objectivity, fairness, and accuracy. Journalism is about reporting as it is. It is just immoral and inhumane for newspaper to mislead people. If the approach of printing incorrect stories is allowed proliferated, journalism will eventually go down the path of tabloid journalism.