Just the Facts: How Objectivity Came to Define American Journalism

by David T.Z. Mindich

Book Overview

Draws a history of journalism's most respected tenet--objectivity

If American journalism were a religion, as it has been called, then its supreme deity would be "objectivity." The high priests of the profession worship the concept, while the iconoclasts of advocacy journalism, new journalism, and cyberjournalism consider objectivity a golden calf. Meanwhile, a groundswell of tabloids and talk shows and the increasing infringement...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 081475614X
• ISBN13: 9780814756140
• Release Date: July 2000
• Publisher: New York University Press
• Length: 200 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.8" x 8.8"

Customer Reviews

A great source for anybody researching history of journalism

I have ready many books on journalism and its historical significance, but none traces how objectivity has shaped the profession like "Just the Facts." I heartily recommend this unique and compelling book for anyone interested in the field and how it came to be.

Fine book, historical analysis of objectivity

I bought this book after reading the favorable review in the Christian Science Monitor. It is a useful book for journalists and people interested in media history. Its historical analysis of objectivity is more needed than ever, with journalism getting more sensational by the day.

Excellent!

This is one of the best treatments of journalism I've ever read. It is both a gripping historical narrative (with an excellent chapter on how the New York Times covered lynching) and a serious intellectual history of an idea central to journalism: how journalists started to think of themselves as objective. At its core, it is also a cultural history of the nineteenth century. Perhaps this review makes the book sound like it's a bit of everything, but the chapters are focused and interesting. I recommend it to anyone interested in journalism and/or intellectual history.