Where is the news that matters?

 

 Kuantan MP Wan Razali Wan Nor’s comment on nurses’ uniforms could be read as just another PAS hang-up with female body curves. That aside, his comment raises related stories that journalists could have side-barred to add value to an otherwise non-event.

How has Islamic fashion changed since the first International Muslim Women’s Textile and Apparel Conference in Kuala Lumpur in 2004?

What exactly is the Syariah-compliant dress code? Are hijab-wearing women in ripped skinnies or flight attendants in flattering sarong kebayas flouting the code?

What are the proper dress codes in clinical settings, for instance, in the United Kingdom and the Middle East? How has nurses’ functional wear evolved since the days of Florence Nightingale? And why are nurses’ uniforms originally white?

News reporters may not see explicit values in these questions given the emphasis on politics, and more politics. Herein lies the blind spot of habituating to political news reporting - akin to missing the forest for the trees.

What does routine coverage without context lead to? Potential stories behind privileged comments are left hidden. “Reporting” then becomes little more than edited transcripts of who said what in Parliament. The implications behind what was said are missed.

The MPs lead the news, reporters follow. That effectively kills ground-breaking journalism. We need to step back, think, and look at the bigger picture. Now, more than ever, journalists need to put their ears to the ground, research, and expound on what really matters to readers.

Here’s the irony. Wan Razali’s feigned chastity was reported. But overlooked are the shortage of well-trained nurses, escalating costs of health services, and the rich-poor gap in accessing medical treatments.

Where are the news and views that broaden readers’ take on issues? Why are we not reading more expository articles with embedded hyperlinks for context and background - articles that tackle the “so what”, “how”, “why” and “what now” dimensions of reporting?

Yes, a journalist’s job is to cover the “big” stories of the “big” people. Equally vital is to get behind the platitudes and uncover the implications of what the “big shots” said.

‘Why not’ and ‘what now’

From my experience in conducting workshops for mid-career journalists in parts of Asia, the most challenging task was to figure out how journalists in developing communities could do better besides churning out routine “news” that mattered little to readers’ daily concerns.

Community issues are many if journalists get down to talking to the people. (First place to start - readers’ comments). The “small people” do matter in journalism.

Instead, news portals are routinely reacting to political brinkmanship, allegations and counter-allegations of party incompetency, party infighting, and ridiculous remarks by political prudes.

If our news portals are to qualify as change agents, journalists need to be more proactive in covering the complexities of community issues. We can do better.

Being proactive simply means “creating or controlling a situation rather than just responding to it after it has happened”. This beats the routine reaction to events and issues.

As I had written in the past, a proactive journalistic mindset can only evolve when reporters begin to acutely observe events, mind map the causes and effects, and anticipate issues before they happen.

Proactive journalists are highly intuitive. They do not only react but think about what can happen when situations and controversies persist. They see the hidden problems and pre-empt the critical questions, questions that critical readers will ask.

Profit and reporting not mutually exclusive

To repeat, proactive journalists focus on asking “why”, “why not”, “so what”, and “what now” throughout their research. They observe and contextualise what they have heard and seen to local community concerns. They explain what they have learned, and in the process, educate their readers on the complexity of issues.

Yes, news portals necessarily depend on advertisers and subscribers to remain viable. Without continual funding, journalism dies. However, generating profits and mind-expanding reporting can work in tandem. They are mutually productive. Each drives the other.

High-quality public service journalism matters now more than ever. Readers do care about the quality of information and stories that journalists provide. News portals that keep churning out routine content will soon become predictable, uneventful, dull, and journalistically numbed to what really matters.

Readers with a dose of intelligent scepticism will ultimately ask: which news outlet do I turn to when I want to know in depth about what is going on in my community? Which news outlet can I trust to help me make the best possible decision about my life, my work, my family, and my community? - Mkini

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ERIC LOO is a former journalist and educator in Australia and a journalism trainer in parts of Asia.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.