Who is the Libelous?

“Put it before them briefly so they will read it, clearly so they will appreciate it, picturesquely so they will remember it and, above all, accurately so they will be guided by its light.”- Joseph Pulitzer

Since Joseph Pulitzer’s time the media has increased in a more pure form; this has aroused from elements in society such as, technological upgrades, public weary and enforced laws. This Western culture, the United States strives for news about everything. For the viewers and readers of the news, the information presented is piled to the sky, from the “War on Terror” to who celebrities are sleeping with. Journalists are in a competition for the exclusive story of their lifetimes. Surprisingly, journalists can be impatient and quickly print information that appears to be phenomenal. All the while, this phenomenal story of the lifetime is screened by an audience. The reaction of the audience may be positive or negative, but undoubtedly somebody is screening for libelous material. In May of 2007, little three years old Madeleine McCann went missing in Portugal.

London newspapers, the Daily Star, and the Daily Express attempted to connect the dots of the missing girl; their skepticism was proven libelous and the McCann parents received 1.2 million dollars and vast apologies in 2008. The story doesn’t end here; one of the lead Portuguese investigators, named Goncalo Amaral was kicked off the case from leaking out information to the media. He then decided to write a book entitled “The Truth of the Lie”. Amaral’s book implies that Madeleine might have died and her parents may have tried to cover it up. Currently, Amaral is accused of creating libels and an injunction has been placed upon him (Goodman, Al. 1/11/2010).

It appears as though Goncalo Amaral thought this was the phenomenal story of his life but it could ruin him. In the perspective of the McCann family, they’ve lost a child and they’ve suffered incredibly from the media, Amaral, and the people trying to create a scene involving the parents as suspects.

REFERENCES

Goodman, Al. (2010, January 11). McCann’s parents to attend libel case against police officer. CNN World. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/europe/01/11/portugal.britain.madeleine.mccann/index.html?iref=allsearch

Joseph Pulitzer Quotes. Retrieved from http://thinkexist.com/quotes/joseph_pulitzer/

CMJ 236 Objectives

At the end of this semester I would like to know how to write for the mass media by adopting a new style of writing. This style will consist of neutrality with the subject but will be overloaded with facts such as, who, what, when, where, and most importantly: why. This style would not only increase my writing stamina but the attraction that will be presented to readers who may later develop into consumers of my writing. Journalism infatuates my mind; it tells a story of what is happening to society with a never ending plot. Protagonists and antagonists arise through the various sections of a basic newspaper. Deborah Tannen, writer of The Argument Culture claims that the media produces controversial information and this trade couldn't survive if it produced information that everybody agrees with(Tannen 1998). This seems true but it appears as though some well known journalists use distortion to get a reaction and more readers. Over exaggerations I consider to be distortion. This may create more reaction, but the object that the spotlight is on can be destroyed from a person's over use of imagery and vocabulary. In sort, I would like to create news that is pure.
-Samuel M. Mayhew