If you aren’t accountable to anyone, you can tweet threads spinning any story you want — and it will get praise and attention and RTs from people desperate to see things change. That doesn’t make it right or healthy for democracy.
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Yes, the so-called “mainstream media” screws thugs up often — is too safe, is too access-driven, etc. — and that’s why alt-press and bloggers and citizen activists are essential as well.
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Journalists — at least good ones — are totally comfortable with — in fact eager to be held accountable from all sides: from editors, from readers, from the left, right, and every direction.
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The differences between the types of people adding to the conversation are important, though, and I don’t think we want to ignore those distinctions.
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When I was at Law Dork, I had little influence over the conversation, but I also had little accountability — which let me explore the outer reaches of things a little more carelessly. Sometimes, it led to a gem, which was great!
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The things I would write there were often bad — and were certainly not edited by anyone. I had no one, besides commenters, telling me, “Why are you writing this? It has no logical coherence?” or “This adds nothing to the conversation.”
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But, it taught me a lot, and I learned about process, and I learned how to follow a story — like the beginnings of marriage equality, SCOTUS rulings, the hate crimes bill, the federal Prop 8 lawsuit.
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Then, when I did get an editor at Metro Weekly, I was at a local, niche publication — but I was in DC and covering an issue of growing national importance: LGBT rights. So, I saw my influence on the conversation grow, along with accountability.
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When I was able to ask a question at the White House press briefing, for example, it often was as much about getting the folks in the front two rows to think about the issue — bc I knew they could actually push for an answer from the White House.
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Then, I went to BuzzFeed and had more of a voice, and, as BuzzFeed has grown and as I’ve continued my work, my input in the conversation has grown — but, even looking at the replies here, my accountability has grown as well.
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Recently, I tweeted out a story that some folks thought our framing of it was bad. I responded to people for like 6 hours. And, you know what, many were still not satisfied,but I followed 3 of them, bc I wanted to make sure I was getting their insights going forward.
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Moments like that are how I like to make sure I keep holding myself accountable.
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And, as usual, pup is right that some journalists — higher up the scale or not from me (and, on bad days, I’m sure me as well) — take fair criticism poorly. That’s wrong, and we all should work on that.https://twitter.com/nycsouthpaw/status/934298892941664256 …
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Anyone looking for the truth and seeking to add their voice to the conversation should do so. Of course, and I love it — I am a prime beneficiary of this new world.
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But, as readers, I suggest people think about whether those tweeting claims or conclusions that happen to agree with what you want to hear have engaged in independent journalism to reach this conclusion — and whether they are accountable to anyone for what they write.
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End of conversation
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You mean like FOX News?
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How about when you read a real journalist and they leave facts out?
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