Journalism 101

Zooey Deschanel at the L.A.Winnie the Pooh Premiere

Image taken from accesshollywood.com

I read an opinion piece yesterday by Patt Morrison of the L.A. Times titled "Downtown L.A.: Good Enough for the Royals, but Not for Zooey Deschanel?" The article opened with a rather rude and baseless statement by the journalist:

"I can't believe Zooey Deschanel is really the snobby cow she came off sounding like Saturday evening."

I cringed. As an opinion piece, the journalist is entitled to her opinion. As a person she is entitled to her opinion, but since when does credible journalism resort to name calling? Since when is it kind or acceptable to lash out at another person?

There's a clear distinction between tabloids and entertainment journalism. While both modes aim to inform the reader about pop culture and any type of breaking entertainment news, one form is often guilty of using 'unidentified sources' as a means of  elaborating or embellishing actual events and scenarios. Tabloids often will report untrue stories simply to sell more copies. Reputable entertainment journalists will cohere with basic journalism rules and triple check their sources to ensure that what they are reporting is the truth.

Tabloids have gotten a bad reputation because the content is usually aimed at shocking the reader, not informing them. Patt Morrison's opening sentence appears to be doing the same thing.

Entertainment journalists are concerned with reporting factual breaking news in the entertainment industry. They do not report false or embellished stories and their aim is not to hurt people for the sake of making money. They can make money by reporting true events because we all know that their is a surplus of entertainment news waiting to be reported.

Often, an entertainment journalists opinion is expected to make an appearance in their work. When you watch a movie or go see a concert, you are expected to give a review. When you see something you really like on the red carpet, you put them on a best dressed list. When you see someone wearing an outfit you dislike on the red carpet, they make the worst dressed list.

As a journalist, you are expected to back up your opinion with facts and reliable sources. You're also expected to keep in mind that not everyone will agree with your opinion. That is why it is extremely important to proceed with respect and proper journalism etiquette, i.e. not calling someone a 'cow'.

So Patt Morrison what I have to say to you is that not only was your comment rude and unprofessional but extremely unfortunate because you have given opinion pieces and entertainment journalists a bad rep. Thank you for making it an ongoing struggle to be taken seriously in this field.

HERE is the link to Pat Morrison's article

HERE  is Zooey Deschanel's response. It's a good read and very well written!