Fact checking is admittedly a "must" in journalism, advertising and institutional communication. That is the reason why I read and I recommend to read FactCheck.org. As much as I recommend to read CJR Campaing Desk. But the main concern in accuracy or in finding the truth in public communication is not only on "fact checking".
Today, in my view, when looking for accuracy and truth in public communication is even more relevant to pay attention to the "fact assembling". Because different ways of assembling the same "checked facts" have different senses. Last but not least, "fact explanation" is kind of essence of communication. Because human "facts" (please, do not confuse them with simple "data") are not the way everything is (or can be) supposedly explained. Rather, the point is that facts must be explained in order to find their meanings. Lo and behold a "must" in communication. Alas! I do not know yet a team intensely working on fact assembling and explanation. In the meantime, is worthy to read "Finding Truth on the Internet", by Louise Witt (Wired news, Sep 16, 2004). Some excerpts:
FactCheck.org doesn't claim to dispense the truth. Instead, the internet-based service, funded by the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania, analyzes the accuracy of political advertising on both sides of the ideological aisle.
FactCheck.org fills a journalistic void. Major media outlets tend to report on the strategy behind campaign commercials rather than analyzing the content for veracity. Even though Jackson pioneered ad watches for CNN, the cable network let him go last year.
"I've seen the press generally put less emphasis on ad watches and fact-check-type stories," Jackson said. "Political coverage is too much weighed toward covering the sport of politics: who's ahead, who's behind."
Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center, who hired Jackson to head FactCheck.org, said the media tends to give both sides of the story without providing analysis. "He said/she said journalism tends to do that, and this is especially true when you're talking about advertising," she said.
Jamieson said it's difficult for journalists who cover the campaigns to decipher whether the assertions in the ads are correct. "A lot of journalists who cover campaigns aren't policy experts," she said. "It takes time to find the journalist who follows the policies and checks the facts. Under deadline, it's difficult to do."
Full text here. |
Comentarios