Understanding what philosophy had to do with a BA Journalism course has made aspects clearer to me. As journalists we question every aspect of a story, yet in order to question something we should know where ideas and questioning were first exercised.
Within his book, ‘History of Western Philosophy’, Russell stated, ‘it is not what the man finds that distinguishes him, but why and how he believes it’. Copernicus believed that the sun was the centre of the universe and that the earth had a twofold motion. However, Tycho Brahe held that the sun and the moon orbit the earth but the planets orbit the sun. Both philosophers must have had reason to believe what they did.
I find it interesting to note that journalists have the capacity and responsibility to enhance democratic debate because only a minority of people can participate directly in discussions and decisions which affect society, so it is therefore journalists’ responsibility to alert and inform the public about matters of importance.
Journalists have a convention to follow to which Article 10 is the most important. This article states that ‘everyone has a right to freedom of expression’, to which their right to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas will not be interfered by authorities. However, journalists exercising their rights should be aware of Article 8 within the same convention, which is based on privacy being protected, as this will effectively argue against them.
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