The Struggle of Truth

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FIRST REACTION

After reading the anatomy of Diana Sugg's difficult story about R.J. in the Baltimore Sun, I noticed an interesting parallel. The parallel I noticed was a connection I made to the field of Anthropology. Human beings are complex individuals who have gone through changes, both environmental and cultural, that can attest to our strength. So, it is only right, it seems, to study human beings and what makes certain individuals or groups so different from the rest. However, the dark past of Anthropologists is widely known and serves as a prime example of how invasion of privacy can have huge detrimental impacts. Diana Sugg struggled with the concept of privacy and how far is too far throughout the duration of her reporting and writing of her story. Journalism as a field has many of the negative connotations that the field of Anthropology does regarding the value of the product over the value of a human life. If I was in Diana's shoes, I would have struggled significantly as well with these important issues of privacy; but, the point is Diana did struggle.

"VULTURES"

Journalists are often referred to as "vultures" and sometimes rightfully so. Using celebrity journalism as an example, many people's privacy has been violated by journalists just so that they can produce a headline. While many people read these stories and their lives are barely impacted, the person whom the story is written about may be somewhere completely horrified at one of their most precious secrets being made public. The issue with making secrets public is that the public is usually the most severe judge of them all despite being outside the situation. To tie in R.J.'s story, if Diana had not written as carefully as she did, R.J.'s mother could have been harshly judged making her struggle with her son's death even harder than it already is.

THE MOST IMPORTANT STRUGGLE

What I have drawn from this heartbreaking story and its anatomy is this: no matter what the story is about, the people who are involved are all people each with their own story and own struggle. I think that this is one of the most important things to keep in mind when pursuing journalism or even when your friend tells you a secret of their own. Even people who commit the most horrendous acts are still people that are struggling with something no matter how small. When writing about people it is important to imagine if that person was sat right next to you while you are typing. Would they be okay with having that facet of their life exposed? Is there a way to present the story in a way that remains as objective as possible? What is the point of you exposing this element? Is it to bring light or to hurt? These questions should preface every story, every interaction, every exposed secret. If you find yourself writing and not even considering the person involved feelings maybe you should consider not writing it at all.