From the Editors: You Be the Reporter

When the next president marches down Pennsylvania Avenue on Jan. 20, he will see showcased on the face of the Newseum, Washington’s striking new museum, the chiseled text of the First Amendment—an iconic, seven-story-high tribute to a free press.

With the government he leads, the troubled economy and the rise in instant communication, the new president will take office at a difficult time for that historic freedom—and for our democracy. 

This election campaign occurs at a unique moment in public communications. Economic forces have undermined commercial media and ravaged newspaper and television network newsrooms, silencing a generation of reporters and experts. And instant communication has created a blizzard of opinion and attitude posing as factual information. No surprise, then, that voters feel overwhelmed by a tidal wave of words and numbers, of claims and counterclaims, at a moment when they need all the understanding, perspective and help they can get. 

We’ll be working to forcefully and clearly address the crucial issues facing our nation, and specifically the 50-plus population. But there’s another very important role to be played—by you.

During this campaign, adopt the idea that in the information age, citizens must learn the tools of traditional journalism. It’s called news literacy, and it means that you learn to be your own reporter or editor. If you practice some of the skills that are the foundation of journalism, you can cut through much of the chatter and chaff and obtain useful, solid information. News literacy for the public is a concept developed by Dean Howard Schneider at the State University of New York’s journalism school at Stony Brook. It’s an introductory course for new students there, but we think there are important lessons for voters of all ages.

Start with these election-year tips:

1. Reach out. Challenge your own biases and assumptions by seeking new voices.

2. Differentiate among news, opinion and advertising. As Stony Brook professor Jim Klurfeld says, “Evaluate sources. Evaluate sources. Evaluate sources.” There’s a difference, for example, among the Congressional Budget Office, the Heritage Foundation, the White House Office of Management and Budget, and the Center on Budget Policy and Priorities.

3. Be aggressive. Being a good news consumer today is hard work. On the Internet, rank and popularity of a story do not necessarily mean reliability.

4. Follow a story over time. You can gain perspective on an issue and evaluate the credibility of your information source.

5. Take the time to get the necessary information. The stakes are huge; the extra effort is worth it.

There’s a difference between evidence and inference, between solid information and junk. Our mission at the Bulletin is to help clarify those distinctions. But as a responsible citizen in the information age, your task is more difficult—and more important.

Illustration by Istvan Banyai.