Why Democracy Needs an Investigative Journalism - 1815 Words

I N T R O D U C T I O N â€Å"A free, aggressive, open and bold press is part of the spiritual core of our Democracy†. -Thomas Jefferson In the world we are living today, investigative journalism is becoming a significant part in our daily lives as it informs, unleash and reveals us the happenings in our community, society, government and in the country. Having the democracy to exercise and express our freedom of the press, which was have been suppressed before, during the Marcos regime, we can say that the Philippine news media’s role is critical to the advancement and preservation of the country’s democratic institutions and way of life and in helping catalyze equitable development. The issues and problems confronting the Philippine press†¦show more content†¦The act of doing this generally is called investigative journalism and is distinct from apparently similar work done by police, lawyers, auditors and regulatory bodies in that it is not limited as to target, not legally founded and closely connected to publicity. Investigative reporting is distinctive in that it publicizes information about wrongdoing that affects the public interest. Denunciations result from the work of reporters rather than from information leaked to newsrooms. While investigative journalism used to be associated with lone reporters working on their own with little, if any, support from their news organizations, recent examples attest that teamwork is fundamental. Differing kinds of expertise are needed to produce well-documented and comprehensive stories. Reporters, editors, legal specialists, statistical analysts, librarians, and news researchers are needed to collaborate on investigations. Knowledge of public information access laws is crucial to find what information is potentially available under freedom of information laws, and what legal problems might arise when damaging information is published. New technologies are extremely valuable to find facts and to make reporters familiar with the complexities of any given story. Thanks to the computerization of government records and the availability of extraordinary amounts of information online, computer-assisted reporting (CAR)Show MoreRelatedThe Importance of Investigative Jou rnalism Essay769 Words   |  4 PagesThough connected through the general base of being a part of the media, investigative journalism is far from the daily reporting and paparazzi reports we are used to. 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