In the end of 2009, Robert Niles published material Doing journalism in 2010 is an act of community organizing
Already the name of the material declares a problem of objectivity and about the attitude of the author to this problem. He in practice is the organizer of community.
Robert Niles names an audience of readers of traditional newspapers. He notes that the audience does not pass automatically to the Internet. Here it is necessary to create a new community, which has much greater value than the audience. The author will organize community. Robert Niles reminds that community is not only a geographical concept; it can be an Internet association. He offers three steps in creation of community: to collect a handful of adherents, to strengthen voices of those who speak on the same theme, and to lead them to solving problems. Here, on the third step, Robert Niles speaks about a problem of objectivity: « When your reporting leads you to a solution to one of the community's problems, you cannot allow journalistic fears about " objectivity " keep you from advocating it».
Robert Niles advises to speak with community also outside of official forums, to encourage leadership and to find solutions: « Because if you cannot show that you care enough about the community to defend it, and its interests, that community will never rally around you ».
This article has received many responses on the site and on Twitter. Opinions confirm that many journalists are compelled to arrive at a new definition of objectivity. Here one of responses to article.
From David Lichtenstein
« If I expect to ever really monetize my blog I must rally the community by advocating for an issue. It goes against every objective bone in my journalistic body but it must be done. This community, like all others, is starving for intelligent and well researched opinion that advocates for its interests. The time has come to become more than a reporter. I must be a columnist, ad salesman, promoter, accountant and all the other things I never learned after 20 years living in a newsroom. »
You raise excellent points, here. No longer can a journalist be isolated from the rest of the business. Everything is getting rolled up into one, and it throws our standard views into disarray.
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