This discussion started with a great question from Asta Wistrand, so I'll start my response there.
A tip-off from the PM's Office would actually be one of the easier to handle, because the source and motive for their 'leak' is obvious - to win political gain.
Therefore, it would be equally obvious to subject that tip-off to the most strenuous examination possible.
As for the main question - whether journalists should be more open - absolutely.
Love Strypey's idea of following Nicky Hager around with a camera, especially if it was in the cinema verite style of Laura Poitras' Citizen Four, complete with long moments of pregnant pause, silence and reflecting the agonies of self-doubt that come with this territory.
I have had some experience of running an open newsroom - literally open, with our office in Rarotonga in a former auto showroom with big display windows. I figured the sight of us at 3am on deadline was the best advertisement for a busy weekly.
More generally, an open news process would help demystify the process, and remove the need for the traditional voice-of-god tone, and even narrative.
Against this might be a lessening of confidence in the process, much as patrons might if they saw what REALLY went on in a restaurant kitchen :)
But back in support, teppanyaki restaurants are a great example of an open creation process, one where the innate professionalism, precision, art, craft and skill of the practitioner is on full display.
So "open news" as outlined by Alistair could be a real crowd-puller, as long as we have the resources to conduct such newsrooms professionally, and give plenty of context between what is a draft and what is final ... and how the public may gain accountability for errors, including editorial errors of judgement of tone, etc.
My 3 cents worth (because I'm competitive like that) !
Jason Brown · Sun 20 Sep 2015 9:40PM
This discussion started with a great question from Asta Wistrand, so I'll start my response there.
A tip-off from the PM's Office would actually be one of the easier to handle, because the source and motive for their 'leak' is obvious - to win political gain.
Therefore, it would be equally obvious to subject that tip-off to the most strenuous examination possible.
As for the main question - whether journalists should be more open - absolutely.
Love Strypey's idea of following Nicky Hager around with a camera, especially if it was in the cinema verite style of Laura Poitras' Citizen Four, complete with long moments of pregnant pause, silence and reflecting the agonies of self-doubt that come with this territory.
I have had some experience of running an open newsroom - literally open, with our office in Rarotonga in a former auto showroom with big display windows. I figured the sight of us at 3am on deadline was the best advertisement for a busy weekly.
More generally, an open news process would help demystify the process, and remove the need for the traditional voice-of-god tone, and even narrative.
Against this might be a lessening of confidence in the process, much as patrons might if they saw what REALLY went on in a restaurant kitchen :)
But back in support, teppanyaki restaurants are a great example of an open creation process, one where the innate professionalism, precision, art, craft and skill of the practitioner is on full display.
So "open news" as outlined by Alistair could be a real crowd-puller, as long as we have the resources to conduct such newsrooms professionally, and give plenty of context between what is a draft and what is final ... and how the public may gain accountability for errors, including editorial errors of judgement of tone, etc.
My 3 cents worth (because I'm competitive like that) !