The most trusted man in America

Front page of today's San Jose Mercury News from the newseum.org

"A good journalist doesn't just know the public, he is the public. He feels the same things they do..." Walter Cronkite was quoted as once saying.
How relevant is that message to us today? With all the media in all its various forms and ways to access it, it is ever more important to be reminded of journalists like Cronkite.
Cronkite was able to establish trust with his audience because he recognized the journalist's role in society. Whether it was following the developments in Vietnam to see for himself and report to the rest of the country or bring guidance after the assassination of President Kennedy, he defined the ethics of journalism. He seemed to see his role as a public servant, with the duty of keeping the public informed in order to maintain our democratic society. That respect for the public was huge and cannot be over-emphasized.
When I go back to my classroom this year, I have a concrete example to refer to when I talk about the code of ethics. I can talk about how a reporter seeks the truth, how one does her own reporting, how one minimizes harm to colleagues and subjects, how one works independent of personal bias, and how one holds oneself accountable to the public.
It is a mouthful, but I am proud to say that I attended the ASNE Reynolds High School Journalism Institute at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Arizona State University.

Eric Chow
Phillip & Sala Burton High School
San Francisco, CA