Rachel Perron - June 8, Staging Blog

“Staged, Staging, Stages” explored ethical issues that have come up briefly in class discussions, and rightfully so. It’s easy to imagine which images for a particular report best explain and convey the importance, interest and relevance of a story to the audience. While this is the overarching goal for journalists, our obligation to the truth supersedes using the “perfect” video or photography (though in order to be perfect journalistic work it couldn’t be staged). Breaking this obligation to the truth destroys journalistic credibility universally, not just for the individual who decided to stage a scene. Not to mention it’s lazy journalism. I can’t imagine who would rather use a fake shot, where the subject has one of those phony “I’m trying to act natural faces on”. One of the most prevalent instances of this that Wertheimer mentions in his paper, just happens to be one of my biggest pet peeves: the interviewee walking down the street, taking a book from the shelf, reading documents in his office, all clearly done without a purpose and at the reporter’s request. Waiting around to get that natural shot isn’t just better for ethical reasons, it’s better because it produces better content. If you’re imagining what you think something is supposed to look like, chances are the viewer can imagine it similarly too, and then you’re not seeking the truth, just reiterating assumptions.