The general consensus that journalism needs an immediate ethical makeover is an acknowledgment that's been long-overdue. Those tasked with resolving this issue now face several challenges in implementing the necessary changes. The first was to enable all those concerned with the waning credibility of journalism with a viable, interactive platform on which they could raise these concerns and discuss them with one another. In recent years, the rise of websites such as SpinSpotter.com and NewsTrust.net has initiated a trend that must continue to permeate the world of journalism. While this is a good start for now, a much greater effort on the part of news reporters and consumers is required for it to take full effect.
SpinSpotter.com was an exasperating experience for me. While I realize it is the younger of the two sites up for review and its web developers are very upfront about the fact that it is still "very beta", there is much to be said about the operation.
Despite impressive website design (the site looks good and is easy to navigate) and very well-written copy (including a concise mission statement that's accompanied by a great YouTube video), a lot more back-end support and membership volume is required before SpinSpotter can take off as a useful tool. The fact that it is far more daunting to learn how to use this website than it is to actually encourage online news sources to re-evaluate their ethics needs to be addressed thoroughly if it wants to achieve its bottom line. I have been a Mac user for the past 8 years and this is the first time I have ever encountered a website that I couldn't operate of Safari, my default browser. When I finally downloaded it, I thought it would be easy to work the SpinSpotter tool bar, but the instructions provided on how to use it were not thorough-enough for me to operate the application with ease. I had trouble highlighting specific points in the articles I read and there were times when I couldn't highlight the entire phrase I wanted to call attention to. I also believe that the SpinSpotter team has to work on recruiting more members to the site. I viewed several online articles that were colored with bias and yet had not yet been reviewed. In order for this site to be effective, its web developers and marketing team have to work on getting more people involved, although I doubt that many would take on the heroic and incredibly tedious task of "spin spotting" without enough incentive to do so. "For the greater good" simply doesn't cut it. There's no regular citizen or professional journalist who would spend all that time highlighting articles that raise ethical concerns. I would suggest that the SpinSpotter team hire a control group or editing team to do this and speed up implementation.
I realize that this website is still very new and this allows some room for error, however given the gravity of the situation it aims to remedy, I believe that those involved should work even harder to iron out the kinks as soon as possible. That being said, my overall first impression of SpinSpotter is that it comes off as the very thing it is fighting against: All PR and fluff, but no actual substance to back it up. I look forward to being proven wrong and am certain that in time, I will be.
The doubts that SpinSpotter.com raised were quickly alleviated when I checked out NewsTrust.net (on Safari, not Firefox). This website offers a less fancy, far more simplistic design than SpinSpotter, but what it lacks in aesthetics is more than made up for in content. The NewsTrust site is designed to give users an easy time locating, reading and evaluating articles according to specific topics (including World, U.S., Politics, Business, Sci/Tech, Media and Health news) located in the tabs at the top of the page, popularity amongst site members and the type of source being reviewed (including mainstream media such as the Washington Post and the New York Times and independent media). Reviews are very thorough and have even been divided into subcategories that allow users to rate several aspects that define outstanding journalism, such as Balance, Context, Evidence, Fairness, Importance, Information, Sources, Style and Trust. I can say with confidence that NewsTrust salvages my hope for SpinSpotter, especially since this site has had a two-year head start and is partnered with "leading media organizations like PBS, Scientific American, Huffington Post, Mother Jones, LinkTV, Global Voices, the Council on Foreign Relations -- as well as journalism teachers and students at Stanford University, Northeastern, Stony Brook, University of Nevada and Arizona State".
While there are still many concerns as to what is being done to rectify the ethical issues in the industry, the important thing is that organizations are taking the initiative to do so. Despite the difficulties I encountered with SpinSpotter, NewsTrust is a testament to the fact that such a system can work. A continued effort is in order and hopefully, with the involvement of more organizations and encouraged participation, these tools will help us all put the news media back in the public's good graces.
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