Interventionist journalism is a style where reporters actively engage with the subjects they cover. This approach contrasts with maintaining a neutral and objective stance.
This approach aims to influence public opinion and often involves advocating for social change or supporting specific values. Journalists practicing interventionist journalism may act on behalf of socially disadvantaged groups. They can also serve as a mouthpiece for political parties and other interest groups. This style is particularly evident in contexts like election campaigns and peace journalism. In these situations, the goal is to promote certain outcomes or values.
Controversy over interventionist journalism
Interventionist journalism is controversial for several reasons. Firstly, the active involvement of journalists in the topics they cover can introduce bias, which undermines the public’s trust in the media. Moreover, this style of journalism seeks to influence public opinion and promote certain outcomes, which can be perceived as manipulation. Consequently, this raises concerns about the role of the media in shaping political and social narratives.
There are also ethical questions about the extent to which journalists should intervene in the stories they cover. For instance, this includes acting on behalf of specific groups or interests, which can blur the lines between reporting and activism. Moreover, in the context of election campaigns, interventionist journalism can affect the democratic process by giving greater visibility to some candidates or issues at the expense of others. Consequently, this can cause journalists to present information to the public in an imbalanced way.
Media systems that are linked to politics influence the work of journalists, forcing them to defend specific issues and interests.
Contemporary studies
Contemporary research on intervention journalism shows that politics and economics have a strong influence on journalism. Specifically, in democratic countries, journalists are more likely to be in public service roles. In market systems, the results are different, suggesting the existence of forms of ‘market authoritarianism’ where journalists are loyal to authority (Mellado et al., 2024). The roles of journalists who intervene in social issues and provide entertainment are not closely related to politics and the economy, which means that further research is needed.
Media systems that are linked to politics influence the work of journalists, forcing them to defend specific issues and interests. The example of Lebanon shows that, despite pressure from politicians, journalists can act independently, exploiting contradictions in the system and connecting with social issues (Selvik & Høigilt, 2021). Furthermore, media intervention in conflicts, as peace journalism demonstrates, is aimed at reducing and ending conflict. However, this raises questions about the objectivity of journalists, who should only report information and not make news decisions (Egielewa et al., 2024).
Bibliography
Egielewa, P. E., Ngonso, B. F., Ukhurebor, K. E., Omuya, S., Petu, I., Nwankwo, U. C., … & Ebrima, F. (2024). Conflicts and the Dilemma of Media Intervention. An Educational Information Management Perspective. Journal of Infrastructure, Policy and Development, 8(5), 2956. https://doi.org/10.24294/jipd.v8i5.2956
Mellado, C., Hallin, D. C., Blanchett, N., Márquez-Ramírez, M., Jackson, D., Stępińska, A., … & Wyss, V. (2024). The Societal Context of Professional Practice. Examining the Impact of Politics and Economics on Journalistic Role Performance Across 37 countries. Journalism, 25(11), 2237-2263. https://doi.org/10.1177/146488492412299
Selvik, K., & Høigilt, J. (2021). Journalism Under Instrumentalized Political Parallelism. Journalism Studies, 22(5), 653-669. https://doi.org/10.1080/1461670X.2021.1897476