"Most consumers of the media feel ill these days, like children given the run of a milk bar. Dazzled by all the lines of brightly packaged confectionary, they have eaten and eaten but, instead of feeling better informed or enterained, their stomachs are groaning and their mouths taste strangely sour."
-Matthew Ricketson (2001 pg 149), Chapter 10 of 'Journalism: Theory in practice'.
Throughout my communications degree I have heard again and again how the new 'infotainment' trend in journalism is degrading our news content and society. For the most part I agree with this assertion, however as a journalist I must consider the pros as well as the cons in order to practice objectivity.
Suite101.com provides the article: "The importance of entertainment journalism." It outlines the positive aspects of entertainment factors in the media, particularly in relation to the film industry. According to Chassity Beals, entertainment journalists offer themselves as alternatives to film critics. This is a good thing because journalists go beyond their own opinion and offer insight into the movie-making history and world. I found the section: "The Good, Bad and the Ugly Side of Movie Critiquing" particularly interesting. It says:
"Aside from the controversy of whether a critic is necessary, becoming a film critic is an incredibly difficult thing to do. Anyone can write film reviews and critique films in a blog, but in journalism there are only about 2,000 openings per year in the United States. The number is far less for a film critic. While you do not have to have a degree to be a film critic, you do need to possess a wide knowledge base, understand the film industry and filmmaking process and have a passion for watching films. Every movie cannot be a Star Wars epic or a blockbuster. To review films effectively you must "take the bad and the ugly with the good," says Robert Newton."
In this light, entertainment journalism is both necessary and beneficial.
Read more at Suite101: The Importance of Entertainment Journalism http://www.suite101.com/content/the-importance-of-entertainment-journalism-a234355#ixzz11kDtW33C
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