Why I wanted to be a journalist

Way back in the long ago days, you know like 1973, when I graduated from high school;  I swiftly figured out that I had wrong-tracked myself in getting out of school with nothing to do and little idea about a future.  I realized I needed to figure out what I was going to do and fast.

Ideas floated through my mind and none really took anchor.  Until, that is, I realized doing what I was doing wasn’t going to get it.  I looked back at my high school years and realized that the only thing I was ever able to do well was write.

Writing more often than not got me out of all the trouble my mouth seemed to get me into.  And so, after completing my umpteenth essay on why playing sports is more important than attending Health Class, I opted to join the Army.

For whatever reason, writing always seemed to bail me out of things when I was in school.  Ironically enough, writing has turned out to be the best avenue for a career, as well.  Call it the path of least resistance.

So, once I realized I wanted to be a writer, I needed to figure out how to make that happen.  Making that happen involved what ended up being a 7-year hitch in the military. To make matters short, I got out of the military and went to school to learn how to write.  At least, to learn how to write professionally.

As a writer, total immersion seemed the best way to go.  Get a job that requires you to write something every day.  Even more than something, like two somethings every day and at least one column, or opinion piece.  You know, writing sort of like this piece you are reading now.

So in journalism ethics and morals are huge.  There is no one there to tell you what to write and what not to write.  Sure there are editors who will review your material, and hopefully, they are as good as the editors I had when I was a journalist.

During my time at The Progress-Index in the late 1980’s early 1990’s, I had two stories that were both true, but for which I could not get anyone to go on record.  They were huge stories, the kinds of stories that earn awards.

One story finally was too big to stay hidden.  It was about the Chesterfield Sheriff, who eventually resigned.  We don’t need to go over the dirty laundry, but some of you might remember the incident.

The other story I could never get the main witness to agree to go on record.  That person was afraid she would be attacked as a whistleblower and was in fear for her job.  There was a substantial amount of violence involved with the story that threats would likely have been made.

In the end, the best thing I could do was to ask pertinent questions to people in higher positions.  Sure, it didn’t get the play in the newspapers that it ought to have, but in the end the higher authority cleaned house with certain personnel and righted the ship.

In both circumstances, my editors would not let the stories go.  Both stories were true, but neither one had solid enough sources to run with the information.

In today’s journalistic world, apparently, checking sources and having multiple sources is not very important.  What’s important, is what information do you have and how will it serve to attack the person or group you disagree with.

Which brings us to fake news.  What is fake news?  Fake news is something that gets printed or shown on TV that is not true on its face.  Usually, these sort of things get what’s called as “walked back.”  Walked back means withdrawing from the statement to a point at which the attack is no longer offensive.

The bigger problem now is that the main stream media has been caught in so many entanglements it’s impossible not to believe that such untruths are random mistakes.  The errors have come so flowingly, so willingly, so easily, and so much in one direction that it’s getting to the point where no one wants to believe the MSM.

And, until they clean up their acts, no one ought to believe them.

It has gotten to the point where even a legitimate mistake by a reporter serves only to substantiate the idea of fake news.  There has been enough fake news to throw a shadow over everything that is being put out now.  Oh for the old days, where my editors wouldn’t let me get carried away with a story without abundant proof.