Whiteside argues that journalism is “lacking a critical edge,” specifically noting the McGuire steroid scandal that rocked baseball. Journalists, too concerned with their relations to the team, determined to keep their inside sources, are too hesitant to report the scandal.
I found it interesting that she pointed out that “online communication used fewer types of sources than print media.” While perhaps journalists are a bit too eager to use the retweet button without first confirming in multiple places, the hard copy of a newspaper seems too concrete to not verify a statement with multiple sources. Perhaps it’s the ability to delete a tweet or modify a post on a website, but the idea that print media uses more sources seems perfectly logical.
The hesitancy towards independent bloggers was something I also found interesting. The idea that independent bloggers are “fueling a problematic atmosphere” only gives those in traditional media someone to stand on top of. After decades of being the toy department at newspapers without much credibility, the traditional media has someone to bully. Despite the journalistic integrity that most of these new media have, they do not earn the deserved credibility because of the few bad eggs that online foster the online debate, publishing opinion instead of fact.
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