Objectivity is an important part of journalism. Journalists have to follow certain rules to maintain this objectivity. There are many things to avoid in their writing. If journalists show biasness in their writing, it can lead to loss of trust from readers side. Because, readers always think that journalist are impartial in all agenda and all point of view. So, journalists have to take extra precautions in writing and avoid many things.
Moreover, readers may be misled by misinformation and there are some legal implications also. In the same way, sensationalized writing can lead to loss the credibility and trust of newspaper as well as media outlet. So, these things should be avoided to ensure the objective journalism.
Now let’s know the things that journalists should avoid while writing:
Don’t be biased:
Journalists must avoid bias when reporting or writing in any form. They should present fact on a particular event or issue without taking any side and unbiased way.
Do not plagiarize:
Plagiarism should not be done in any field, not just journalism. Nothing can be taken or copied from anywhere without citing proper sources. Plagiarism is a serious ethical violation in journalism and can damage a journalist’s career. So it must be avoid.
Do not serve wrong information:
The journalist must be sure that what he is writing is hundred percent accurate and factually correct. So information should be verify and checked repeatedly before publishing any news report.
Don’t be sensationalized:
While writing a news report, the important thing to keep in mind is that nothing should be sensationalized. They should focus on presenting the news in a clear, concise, and informative manner. It is very unethical to try to hunt readership by sensationalizing any particular report.
Defamation is a crime:
It is very important for a journalist to take care that his writing does not defame anyone. So, journalists should not describe anything, which degrades the dignity of any person or organization.
No exaggeration:
Another thing to note while writing a news report is that nothing should be exaggerated. This destroys the objectivity of the report. Therefore, without distorting or exaggerating any information, news reports should describe the facts as they are. And consciously avoid all exaggeration while writing the report.
Out of context:
Journalist must stay in the right context while writing a report. They should provide enough background information to help readers understand the significance of the news story and its implications. So they should avoid to going out of context.
Technical language and Jargon:
Many journalists write meaningless sentences or jargon while writing news reports. By doing this they actually mislead the reader. They cannot understand anything by reading such reports. Therefore, stories should be written in a way that the reader can understand and technical language and jargon should be avoided.
No clickbait headlines:
Now there is a thing called clickbait journalism. What is it actually? Many journalists now write clickbait headlines to attract readers. That is, what is not the fact, is being written in the title to attract the reader. It should not be done morally. So, headlines should accurately reflect the content of the news story and should not be designed solely to generate clicks.
Avoid conflict of interest:
Journalists must avoid conflicts of interest while writing reports. It the have any conflict of interest that should be disclosed. At the same time they should avoid writing about topics where they have a personal or financial stake.
Final remarks
There are many other mistakes or illusions that journalists should avoid. Journalists should consciously do these things, and if they do these, the acceptability and credibility of their reports increases. This ensures both the information and ethics of their reports.
