{"id":460,"date":"2024-11-16T06:02:51","date_gmt":"2024-11-16T06:02:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/?p=460"},"modified":"2024-11-16T06:04:45","modified_gmt":"2024-11-16T06:04:45","slug":"post-keynote-panel-explores-loss-of-trust-in-journalism-implications-for-democracy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/2024\/11\/16\/post-keynote-panel-explores-loss-of-trust-in-journalism-implications-for-democracy\/","title":{"rendered":"Post-keynote panel explores loss of trust in journalism, implications for democracy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Tamara Merritt<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was a conversation that unfolded Friday evening under a \u201cReimagining Political Journalism\u201d banner stretched wide across the Richcraft Hall auditorium stage at Carleton University. And the three-way panel discussion responding to political columnist Jeet Heer\u2019s provocative keynote address \u2014 \u201cFact-Checking Won\u2019t Save Democracy\u201d \u2014 took the weekend-long conference\u2019s first steps toward that reimagining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heer, Regina-based national affairs correspondent for The Nation<\/em> and host of the weekly podcast The Time of Monsters<\/em>, was joined by Ottawa author and journalist Andrew Cohen and Sarah St-Pierre, a Master of Journalism student at Carleton University.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The three dissected what it means to be a journalist in today\u2019s politically tumultuous world, and the challenge of building trust in journalism and other key institutions beyond communities of educated elites.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his talk, Heer had argued that the political divide in America is no longer left vs. right but pro-system vs. anti-system. Cohen probed the implications of the shift, highlighting U.S. president-elect Donald Trump\u2019s plans to sidestep conventional rules in the U.S. Congress for vetting his highly controversial cabinet selections in recent days.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Sarah St-Pierre discusses the rise of alternative media, such as Joe Rogan’s podcast, in the American media landscape in a panel discussion at the Reimagining Political Journalism conference at Carleton University on Nov. 15, 2024. [Photo \u00a9 Natasha Baldin]<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe see already the anti-system and pro-system lines are being drawn,\u201d Cohen said, echoing Heer\u2019s analysis of the new political landscape. \u201cThe larger story here is, will institutions hold in the United States . . . (And) the media is an institution; what will be its role in this great institutional struggle?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were no easy answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The panelists discussed an impoverished news industry reeling in an age of digital disruption and widespread distrust, with Heer reiterating his keynote message that mere fact-checking \u2014 a symbol of the journalism fundamentals that failed to thwart Trump\u2019s return to power \u2014 doesn\u2019t easily grapple with larger, uneasy truths about social and economic divides.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s an actual lived experience that people have and simply citing one set of facts, if it\u2019s not in keeping with their lived experience \u2014 it\u2019s not going to get you very far,\u201d Heer said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think there is a real tendency to disregard people, and not try to see why they came to where they are. Aligning ourselves with the pro-system people, rather than trying to be independent adjudicators, I think has been really harmful.<\/p>\u2014 Political columnist Jeet Heer, conference keynote speaker<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

He highlighted the idea that everyone is subject to their own lived experience, which shapes the way they perceive the world and institutions like the media. Rather than trust what are presented as verified facts, many people default to their own feelings and experiences \u2014 and become susceptible to political manipulation and offers of easy solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked about combatting mistrust and challenging anti-system politicians, Heer said \u201cwe have to try to meet people where they are at.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He urged changes to worn out narratives aimed at preserving the status quo and \u201cengaging with marginalized communities \u2026 trying to tell some of those stories and seeing if there is a way of earning back trust.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think there is a real tendency to disregard people, and not try to see why they came to where they are. Aligning ourselves with the pro-system people, rather than trying to be independent adjudicators, I think has been really harmful,\u201d Jeet said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere is a real problem now\u201d for journalists, he added, \u201cwhere you\u2019ve both alienated the anti-system people but now the pro-system people are angry because you haven\u2019t supported them enough.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Andrew Cohen addresses the challenges political journalists face amid a pivotal moment in American democracy during a panel discussion at the Reimagining Political Journalism conference at Carleton University on Nov. 15, 2024 [Photo \u00a9 Natasha Baldin]<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Creating exceptional political journalism that resists partisan alignment is difficult, particularly in a deeply divided social environment where polarization has fueled Trump\u2019s popularity \u2014 and sharpened his attacks on traditional news media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

St-Pierre noted how both U.S. presidential contenders, Trump and Democratic candidate Kamala Harris, engaged with social media influencers and podcasters to reach audiences \u2014 raising questions about how journalism is wrestling with new platforms and the media habits of younger people. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heer said there was a need for journalists to more effectively embrace new platforms while continuing to produce high-quality journalism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI wonder if there is fatigue in the media,\u201d said Cohen, noting a high number of journalists \u201cwho don\u2019t want to go back to the White House. I don\u2019t blame them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While reporting effectively on politics is not an easy task in a polarized world, the panelists discussed ways for journalists to re-establish their authority and trust with those who have largely tuned them out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf we talk more about the process by which we come to truth, I think we can bring people in and earn trust,\u201d Heer said. \u201cWe don\u2019t have inherent trust anymore, we have to earn trust, we have to work towards trust.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Tamara Merritt It was a conversation that unfolded Friday evening under a \u201cReimagining Political Journalism\u201d banner stretched wide across the Richcraft Hall auditorium stage at Carleton University. And the three-way panel discussion responding to political columnist Jeet Heer\u2019s provocative keynote address \u2014 \u201cFact-Checking Won\u2019t Save Democracy\u201d \u2014 took the weekend-long conference\u2019s first steps toward … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":443,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-460","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","latest_post"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/460","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=460"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/460\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":467,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/460\/revisions\/467"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/443"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=460"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=460"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/reimagining-political-journalism\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=460"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}