TIME’S SALUTE TO TRUTH-TELLING

All journalists enjoy getting recognition for their work. But by nature and tradition, they’d much rather tell the story than be the story. What motivates reporters, from Maryland to Myanmar, is not the desire for fame. It’s the hunger to break news, explain the world and hold the powerful accountable. A savvy reporter, if asked theoretically to choose between writing a Time magazine cover story and appearing on the cover, would surely pick the former. Why would a journalist ever get that spotlight? More likely than not due to some kind of bad news. Alas, it is so. Time’s 2018 Person of the Year, revealed Tuesday, is a small group of intrepid journalists from around the world lauded in a cover story titled “The Guardians and the War on Truth.” Six of the guardians are dead. Two are in jail in Myanmar. One faces charges in the Philippines. Journalists in many countries without guaranteed press freedom must take risks to report news that is critical of the government. In America, where the Constitution provides protections, anger and disdain toward the news media permeate hyperpartisan discourse. President Donald Trump has deemed pesky reporter types to be enemies of the people. Such INLAMMATORY RHETORIC, IF TAKEN TO AN EXTREME HERE OR ABROAD, IS DANGEROUS. Yet as much as Time’s story is focused on tragedy and injustice, it’s also a DEIANT, AFIRMING TALE THAT SHOWS REPORTERS ARE TENACIOUS SOULS.

Chicago Tribune