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Objectivity as Strategic Ritual: An Examination of Newsmen's Notions of ObjectivityAuthor(s): Gaye TuchmanReviewed work(s):Source: American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 77, No. 4 (Jan., 1972), pp. 660-679Published by: The University of Chicago PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2776752 .

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Objectivity as Strategic Ritual: An Examination

of Newsmen's Notions of Objectivity'

Gaye TuchmanState University fNew York at Stony Brook

The newspapermentudied believe they may mitigate uch con-tinual pressures s deadlines,possible ibel suits, and anticipatedreprimands f superiors y being able to claim that theirwork s"objective."This article xamines hreefactorswhichhelp a news-

man to define n "objective act": form, ontent, nd interorganiza-tional relationships. t shows that in discussing contentandinterorganizationalelationships,he newsman an only invokehisnews udgment;however, e can claim objectivity y citingpro-cedureshe has followedwhich xemplifyheformal ttributesf anews story r a newspaper. or instance, he newsman an suggestthat he quoted otherpeople instead of offering is own opinions.The article uggests hat "objectivity"may be seen as a strategicritual protecting ewspapermen rom he risks of their trade. Itasks whether therprofessions ight ot also use the term objec-

tivity"n the same way.

To a sociologist, he word "objectivity" s fraughtwith meaning. t in-vokes philosophy, otionsof science,and ideas of professionalism.tconjuresup the ghostsof Durkheim nd Weber, recallingdisputes nscholarlyournals oncerninghenature f a "social fact"and the term'value free."

The social scientist's requentnsistence pon objectivitys not peculiar

to his profession. octors and lawyers eclareobjectivityo bethe

ap-propriate tance toward lients.To journalists,ike social scientists,2heterm objectivity" tandsas a bulwarkbetween hemselvesnd critics.Attackedfor a controversialresentationf "facts," newspapermenn-voke theirobjectivity lmost the way a Mediterranean easant mightweara cloveofgarlic roundhis neckto ward off vil spirits.

Newspapermen ustbe able to invoke omeconcept f objectivityn

1 A shorter version of this paper was deliveredat the 1971 AmericanSociological

Associatedmeetings. benefited rom the comments f Charles Perrow. KennethA.Feldman, Rose L. Coser, and Florence Levinsohn helped me edit.

2 Jacobs (1970) challengescomparisonsbetweennewsmenand sociologists, ointingout that sociologistsgathermore data for a differenturpose. She notes that hereditor'sfirst ule was "Get the facts" and his second, "Don't let the facts interferewith the story."Contemporary ewspapers,ncluding hose forwhichJacobs worked,have cast aside this seconddictum.The quantityand purposeof gathered nformationdo not detractfrommy argument.

660 AJSVolume77 Number4



Objectivitys StrategicRitual

order o processfacts boutsocial reality. his paper will examine hreefactors which influence he newsman's notion of objectivity:form,

interorganizationalelationships,nd content.By form, mean thoseattributes f news stories nd newspaperswhichexemplify ews proce-dures, uch as the use of quotationmarks.By content, mean thosenotions f social realitywhich he newspapermanakesforgranted. on-tent is also related to the newsman's nterorganizationalelationships,forhis experiences ith hoseorganizationsead himto take forgrantedcertain things about them.Finally, I shall suggestthat the correcthandling f a story, hat s, the use of certain rocedures iscernible othe news consumer, rotects he newspapermanromthe risksof histrade, ncluding ritics.

EverettHughes (1964) suggests hat procedureshat serve this pur-pose may be seen as "rituals." A ritual s discussedhere as a routineprocedurewhichhas relativelyittleor only tangential elevance o theend sought.Adherenceo the procedure s frequentlyompulsive. hatsucha proceduremaybe the best knownmeansof attaining hesoughtend does not detract romts characterizations a ritual.For instance,the eighteenth-centuryractice f bleeding atients o "cure" fevermay

be viewed as a ritual.3 nasmuch as newspapermennvoke ritualisticproceduresn order o deflect otential riticismnd to follow outinesboundedby the "cognitive imits of rationality," hey are also per-formancestrategies" Marchand Simon 1967, pp. 137, 142). The term"strategy" enotes acticsused offensivelyo anticipate ttack or defen-sivelyto deflect riticism.4bjectivity s strategic itual may be usedby otherprofessionalso defend hemselves rom ritical nslaught.

This article cites ten news stories.Nine are taken fromfield notesgathered s a participant bserver t a daily metropolitan ewspaper

with circulationf about 250,000.5 he tenth s from bookon newspractices Rivers 1967). In six stories,newsmen riticize he workofcolleagues; n one, a newsman riticizes reporter rom nothernews-paper. The emphasisupon criticisms partlya result of the methodsused.As a participantbserver, tried o ask as few uestions s possible.

3 Nor are proceduresfavored by twentieth-centuryhysicians necessarily mmunefrom characterization s rituals (Everett Hughes, personal communication,1971).Indeed, the reluctanceof many to view medical procedures s rituals s probably a

reflection f doctors'high occupationalprestige.4 Weinstein 1966) speaks of "credibility nhancingtactics" and suggests (personalcommunication,1971) tactics connoting"objectivity,"such as quoting others orpresenting lternativepossibilities y citing negativeevidence or conflictingpinion,may be used to enhance credibilityn interpersonal ommunication.

5 All informants new that I was a sociologist ngagedin research.Many tended todefine my activities n termsof their own work. Their volunteered nterpretationsof my activitiesprovided clues concerning heir own strategiesof newswork.

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AmericanJournal f Sociology

This was especially mportant henobserving he top editorswhospentmuch of the eveningburied undernews copy. When they praisedan

article o one another, heydid not state theirreasons.When theydis-liked a story, heygave manyreasonsforrejectingt. Such reasonswerecarefully ecorded, nd these records re necessarilymore ccuratethanimputations oncerningwhat was "right" about a "good" story.Notmany torieswerecriticized; engthyxpositions f a story's laws,whilereadily ategorized, ere few and far between.However, he categoriesofnegative valuations heygenerated rovided nsights nto the assess-ment f "good" or well-done tories. he discussion f the "presentationof conflictingossibilities" s constructedrom uch negative ategoriesas well as "positive" tatementsf the informants.

I

Unlike ocial scientists, ewsmen ave a limited epertoire ithwhich odefine nd defend heir bjectivity.n Radin's terms 1957, 1960), thesocial scientists a "thinker"; henewsman, "man of action."That is,the social scientistmay engage n reflexive pistemologicalxamination

(Schutz 1962, pp. 245 ff.); the newsman annot. He must make im-mediate decisionsconcerning alidity, eliability, nd "truth" n orderto meet the problems mposedby the nature of his task processinginformationalled news, depletable onsumer roductmade everyday.Processing ews eaves no timeforreflexivepistemologicalxamination.Nonetheless, he newsmen eed some working otionof objectivity ominimize he risks imposed by deadlines, ibel suits, and superiors'reprimands.

Unless a reporter as drawn n extended nvestigatoryssignment,e

generally as less thanone working ay to familiarize imselfwithastory's ackground,o gather nformation,nd to writehis assignment.6The reporter nows hathis written orkwill pass throughn organiza-tional chain consisting f hierarchicallyrranged ditors nd their s-sistants.As newsmen eadily xplain, rocessing story nvolves secondguessing."The reporter secondguesses" the city editor nd his assis-tants; the cityeditors, he newseditors; the news editors, hemanagingeditor nd the editor-in-chief;hese editors, he publisher. he manag-

6 The reporterhas less than one workingday because he may also be asked toaccomplish uch routinetasks as writing bituaries and rewriting ccountsof eventstelephoned to the city room by the newspaper's correspondents.Also, a reportermay not be assigned a story, uch as a fire,until aftera considerableportionof hisworking day has already passed. The task is somewhat different or the "beat"reporter, ince he already has some background nformation t his disposal.However,he will be asked to write more than one story a day, and he must keep up routinecontacts withhis news sources.

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ing editor, he editor-in-chief,nd thepublisher illcriticize story fterit has been printed.

At the observednewspaper, he assistant managing ditor was incharge f making he finalnews udgmentbout writtenopy. f he dis-liked a story, e might riticize helocal news editorfor passing t on.The local editorwould make sometype of comment o the city editor,and the "scolding"would be passed down the hierarchical hain. Atothertimes, he top editormight imply blue pencil"or altera "badstory,"grumblingecause subordinates ad done a poor job and hadcreatedmorework or he editors. n thiscase, subordinates ouldrealizetheirworkhad been inadequatewhentheyread the newspapernd sawthat the printedcopy differed romthe written opy. Scoldingsand"blue penciling" re part of a system f social control Breed 1955)potentially ffectingromotions, eepingone's job, and drawinggoodassignments.

Two factors tandout in this processof hierarchicalxaminationndpotential riticism.he newspaper s a collection f many tories. f toomany storiesmustbe rewritten,he newspaper annotmeet its dead-lines, nd profitswill suffer. ruckscarrying he newspaper o outlying

regionswill leave late; their driversmay meritovertime ay. If oneedition s late, the scheduling f thefollowing ditionswill be affected;printersmay claimovertime.Moreover,f the late morningditionsdonot arrive t newsstandsn schedule, onsumersmaybuy the availablecompeting ewspaper, hus decreasing ompanyprofits. he newsmenfearfutureales may thenbe jeopardized.Reading thecompeting ews-paper, the newsconsumermay decideit is a "superior"newspaper ndchangehis newspaper uyinghabits.

Each newspapertory s a collection f "facts" assessed nd structured

by newsmen. he newsmenmay be held accountablefor the accuracyofanyand all of these facts."The "facts"are read byboth thegeneralnewsconsumer nd the "concerned"news consumer the personwhomthe story quotes, describes, nd/or reports). If the concernednewsconsumer eelshe can prove damageto his business, eputation,tc.,hemay sue for ibel. While libel suits are relatively are, when theydooccur, heyplace news organizationsn financialeopardy.Endangeringa newspaper's eputation, libel suitmay also affect he generalnewsconsumer's roclivityo buy the newspaper. hen, too,a libel suit dis-rupts newsroom outine, equiring ome staffmembers o appear incourt.7

In sum, everystoryentails dangersfor news personnel nd forthe

7 Newsmen also grumbleabout subpoenas to appear in court when trials involveevents theyhave witnessedor reported.Not only do they object to revealingtheirnews sources, but court appearances keep them from their daily routine.

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newsorganization. ach storypotentiallyffects he newsmen'sbilityto accomplishheir aily tasks, ffectsheir tandingn theeyes of their

superiors,nd affects he abilityof the news organizationo make aprofit.nasmuch s the newspapers madeof many tories,hesedangersare multipliednd omnipresent.

II

The newsmen ope with thesepressures y emphasizingobjectivity,"arguing hatdangers an be minimizedf newsmen ollow trategies fnewsworkwhich they identifywith "objective stories."They assume

that, f everyreporter athers nd structuresfacts" n a detached, n-biased, mpersonalmanner, eadlineswillbe metand libelsuitsavoided.The newsmenhinkmostpeopleunderstandhe mportancef deadlines,if only through he Hollywood tereotypesf news procedures;theystress hedangers f ibel suitsto outsiders.8iscussing heir wn experi-enceswith ibel suits,newsmenlaimed heyhad been objectivebut hadmadean unavoidablemistake.Condensed, heir ommentssserted:thenewsmanmust questionfactsby going to the source,but somealleged

factsmust imply e accepted s "true."Viewing verythings question-able leads to such absurdities s the following: RobertJones nd hisallegedwife,Fay SmithJones,yesterday eld whattheydescribed s acocktailpartyat their supposedhome, 187 Grant Street, City,pur-portedlyn honorof a womanclaiming o be Mrs. JohnSmith, om-monly hought o be the auntof theself-describedostess."

The newsmannavigatesbetween ibel and absurdityby identifying"objectivity"with facts"whichhe or othernewsmenbserved r whichmaybe verified. erificationntails he use of,or the possibilityfusing,

appropriaterocedures,uchas telephoning marriageicensebureautodetermine hether obertJoneshad married ay Smith. f verification

8 In my first nterviewwith a newsman (in this case, the vice-presidentn chargeof news at the television tation I observedfor a year), I was given a text on libellaw to study. In discussions, ditors and reportersfrom both the newspaper andtelevision tation mentioned ibel immediatelywhen asked about problems onfrontingnews organization.They also volunteered nformation bout libel suits when askedabout difficultiesheyhad encounteredn their careers.There are basicallytwo kindsof libel: general ibel and libel withmaliciousintent.Let us assume that two mennamed John Black live in Central City. One is an alleged mobsterand the otherowns and manages Central City Bar and Grill.Writinga storyabout John Black,the alleged mobster, reporter tates he owns and manages Central City Bar andGrill.John Black, the restauranteur,may sue for general ibel. If he can prove thereporter new therewere two JohnBlacks and that he willfullymisstated he facts,he may sue for libel with malicious intent.Higher damages are awarded in casesinvolvingmalicious intent,but generallibel suits arisingfromcarelessness, tc., arean occupationalhazard. General libel suits are more frequentn England than in theUnited States. In this country,ibel suits tend to be sensational.

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is necessarybut cannotbe obtained,the newsmenmay followotherstrategies.

III

Besides verifying facts,"the following ourstrategic rocedures, x-emplifieds theformal ttributes f a newsstory, nable thenewsmanto claim objectivity.

1. Presentation f conflicting ossibilities.-Newspapermen ust beable to identifyfacts,"even though ometruth-claimsre not readilyverifiable.or instance, U.S. senatormay claimthatAmerica ags be-

hind theSovietUnion n thedevelopmentf a specificypeofmissile.Areporterertainly annot heckthatclaim n timeto meethis deadline,and it is evenpossiblethat he couldnever ocateadequate informationwithwhichto assess the extentto whichthe claim is a "fact." Thereporteran onlydetermine hatthesenator tated "A." Newspapermenregard hestatementX said A" as a "fact,"even f "A" is false.

This creates roblems orboththereporternd thenewsorganization.First,the newsconsumerupposedlywants to knowwhether tatement"A" is a "fact,"and one function f news s to tell thenewsconsumerwhathe wants and needsto know.Second, incethe senator's laim totruth annot e verified,he newsconsumermayaccuse boththereporterand thenewsorganization f bias (or of "favoring" he senator) f anopposingopinion s not presented. or instance, f the senator is aDemocrat nd thepresident s a Republican, he newsconsumermightaccuse thenewspaper f bias favoringhe Democrats, ecause the only"fact"reported as thattheDemocratic enator aid "A." The newsmanwould feelhis abilityto claim "objectivity"n the face of anticipated

criticism ad beenendangered.Although he reporterannothimself onfirmhe truth f the sena-tor'scharge, e can contact omeonewhocan. For instance, e can askthe Republican ecretaryfdefensewhether he senator's harge s true.If thesecretaryfdefensetates hecharge s "false," hereporterannotprove that the secretary's ssessment s "factual." He can, however,write hat the secretary f defense tated"B." Presenting oth truth-claim"A" attributed o the senator nd truth-claimB" attributed othesecretaryf defense, he newsmanmay thenclaim he is "objective"

because he has presented both sides of the story"withoutfavoringeitherman or politicalparty.9Furthermore,y presenting oth truth-

'Speaking of televisionpractices,Benet (1970, p. 113), an advocate of first-personor interpretiveournalism,points out that, if one statement s filmed, he rebuttalmust also be filmed,not spoken by the televisionreporter.TV and "ink" newsmenrecognize one problemwith presenting onflicting ossibilities. ince news concerns

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American ournal f Sociology

claims, he "objective"reporterupposedly ermitshe newsconsumer odecidewhether he senator r the secretarys "telling he truth."

Calling this practice procedure osteringbjectivitys problematic.In this simple example, t could equally well be labeled "providingsufficientumber f data forthe news consumer o make up his mind."The proceduremay grow ncreasinglyomplex. or instance,while ssert-ing truth-claimB," the secretary f defensemay chargethe senator splayingpoliticswithnationaldefense. he chairman f the House ArmsCommittee, Democrat,may thencounter hesecretary's harge, tatingthat the Republican administrations endangeringnational safetythrough nadequate ntelligence nd cavaliertreatment f the militarybudgetfor rms development. he next day, thenational hairman f apeace groupmay call a pressconferenceo accuseall parties o thecon-troversy f militarism, veremphasizing eapons development o thedetrimentf a determinedxploration f a diplomatic earch for worldpeace and security.A spokesman or the presidentmay thencondemnthe eaderof the peace group s a communistympathizerrying o un-dermine he American oliticalprocess.

At this point, there re fivepersons the senator, he secretary, he

committeehairman, he peace group eader, hepresidentialpokesman)makingnonverifiableruth-claims,ach representingne possiblereality.Analyzing he marijuana ontroversy,oode (1970, pp. 50-68) refers osuch a morass fopinions urportingo be facts s the "politics f real-ity." While thisnotion s sociologically elevant,t is uselessto newsmenfaced with the dilemma f identifyingnd verifyingfacts." However,by pairing truth-claimsr printing hem as they occur on sequentialdays, the newsmen laim "objectivity." s thenewsmen ut it, thenewsconsumermay not be presented ith ll sides ofa story n anyoneday,

but he will receive diversity f views over a periodof time.As a forum iring he "politics f reality," henewspapermen'sefini-

tion of the situation oes beyond he presentationf sufficientata forthe news consumero reach a conclusion. morassof conflictingruth-claims, such as those hypotheticallyntroduced,mightmoreprofitablybe viewed s an invitation or the news consumerso exercise electiveperception, characteristic eaction o news. Indeed, the invitation oselectiveperceptions most nsistent, oreach versionof reality laimsequal potentialvalidity. nasmuchas "objectivity"may be defined s"intentness n objects external o the mind,"and "objective"as "be-

conflict Rovere 1960), a charge s morenewsworthy han a denial. Thus, the chargeplaced at the beginning f a story (because it is more newsworthy,mportant, tc.)mightreceivemore attentionfrom the news consumer han the denial placed towardthe bottom of the story. Rovere (1960) reportsJoseph McCarthy's skill at usingthis rule to maximizehis own news exposure.

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longing o the object of thought ather hanthe thinkingubject" (bothdictionary efinitions),t would appear difficulto claim-as newspaper-

men do that presentingonflictingossibilitiesosters bjectivity.2. Presentationf supportingvidence.-Ofcourse, here re occasions

when the newspapermenan obtain evidence o support truth-claim.Supporting videnceconsistsof locating nd citing additional facts,"which re commonlycceptedas "truth."This insistence ponsupport-ing "facts" is pervasive, unning hroughout he editors' criticisms freporterss well as the reporters' riticisms f editors.

For instance, ne evening the assistantmanaging ditor asked for"more objective obits" after readingan obituarywhichdescribed hedeceased as a "mastermusician."He asked, "How do we know" thedeceased was a ''mastermusician" s opposed to a ''two-bitmusician"playingwiththe townband? He was told that, everalparagraphsntothe story, ne learns the deceased had played withJohnPhilip Sousa.The additional "fact," the editor agreed, ustified he term"mastermusician."

Similarly, reporter riticized he news editors or"bad" nonobjectiveediting,when a published tory referred o "Communist ropaganda"

seen at a specific ocation.He claimed the articleshould have includedmore "facts," uch as the titles of specific bservedworks.While rec-ognizing hat the label "Communist ropaganda"mightnot be an ac-curatecharacterizationf each individual iece of literature, e insistedthat such a presentationwould be more "objective." It would offer"facts" (titles) supportinghe nitial ruth-claim.urthermore,he titleswouldpresumably nable the reader to assess the degree to whichthedescription Communist ropaganda"was accurateand thus "factual,"just as noting he deceased musician's ssociationwith Sousa would en-

able the reader o decide forhimself hether he abel "mastermusician"was warranted.'0

The newsmen's ssertionthat "the facts speak for themselves" sinstructive. his saying implies an everydaydistinction etween the"speaking acts" nd the reporterspeechmaker,ossiper, tc.) speakingforthe"facts." f the reporter ere to speak forthe "facts,"he could

10 One might quite properly object that "piling fact upon fact" presupposed asophisticatednews consumerconversantwith diversified ields. On the one hand,newsmenassume that presenting upportingevidence enables the news consumerto decide forhimselfwhether n allegationor description s "factual."On the otherhand, newsmenoccasionallycomplain about and denigratethe intelligence f theirreaders.In fact,on several occasions,editorsmade a special point of teaching meto read betweenthe lines of newspaperaccounts so that I could assess the "facts"correctly. hese contradictoryssumptionsmightexplain Ellul's insistence 1966, p.76) that the man who believes himself o be knowledgeableand hungersfor newsis readilypropagandized, specially f he adheresto the mythsdominant n techno-logical societies.

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not claimto be objective, impersonal,"without ias." Of course, t issociological ommonplacehat "facts" do not speak forthemselves.or

instance, hibutani 1966) demonstrateshat the assessmentnd accep-tance of "facts" s highly ependent ponsocial processes.3. The judicioususe of quotationmarks.-The newsmen iew quota-

tions of otherpeople's opinions s a form f supportingvidence.Byinterjectingomeone lse's opinion, heybelievethey re removing hem-selvesfrom articipationn the story, nd theyare letting he "facts"speak, s shown n the editors' iscussion f the followingncident.

A slumbuilding, wnedby an absentee andlord,had been withoutheat forseveraldays in a near-zero egreetemperature.he landlord

claimedsomeonewas fixing he furnace t thatmoment.WhenSmith,the local news editor, alled the building, o one was working n theheating nit, "fact" Smith dded to thereporter'story.Checking hestory,Jones, he assistantmanaging ditor, old his subordinatemithto contactmore tenants f the building nd to increase he number fnamesmentionedn the story.

Jones ays,"If youcan get me more quotationsrom enants]we'll[print]t." [After while]Jones epeatedhathe wantsmore eople

quoted,ecause I'vehadtoomuch rouble." ithoutupportingvidence,the torymaybe libelous.

Addingmorenames and quotations, he reportermay removehis opin-ions from he story y getting thers o say whathe himselfhinks. orinstance, overing concernedroup'svisitto a U.S. attorneyo requestactionon themassacre f blackstudentsn Orangeburg,outhCarolina,a reportersked a minister orhis reactionto the federal ttorney'sbehavior.

Theministernswered,Wehave great ealof concernorwhat s goingon. t's unfortunatehat ur oncern asrespondedo na way hat eallydidn't ecognizehatwhen eople avebeenkilled, great ealof emotionevolveswhichs not aken areofbytelling eople ohurrylong." . .The reporterhen sked, To put t briefly,re youdissatisfied?"heministereplies,I thinkhere as unnecessaryarshness."e looks t afriendnd ontinues,Rudenesss theword."

As weleft, he reporterxplained hathe interviewedheministerpecifi-cally to get those statementso that he would not have to editorializeand call theU.S. attorneyudehimself.

The use of quotations o remove he reporter'sresence rom he storyextends o theuse of quotationmarks s a signaling evice.They maybe used, s discussed, o signal This is a statement elongingo someoneother hanthereporter."hey also maybe used to indicate so-called."For instance, he New Left (without uotationmarks)names a group.

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The "New Left" (withquotationmarks) ndicates groupcalling tselfthe New Left; in this case, the egitimacy f the group s questioned.

Impressed y a draft-resistanceemonstration, reporter sed quota-tion marks n all possibleways to appease his editorswhomhe knewtobe opposed to thedemonstration.e wrote:

Some [thousands f] persons warmed o a sunny City] Parkyesterdaywhere an "incrediblyuccessful" nti-draft,nti-war ally was climaxedwhenmore han . . youths urnedntheir raft ards.

The tenor f the 12 hourdemonstrationas that "New Left"movementis growing nd must be enlarged o erase presentAmericanpolicyand"buildanAmericawewon'tbe ashamed o live n."

The Park protestwas the [City] segment f coast-to-coastemonstrationsin 60 cities calledNational ResistanceDay. The two-day ventconcludestodaywith politicalworkshops"n the [City] area.

The [City] Park rallywas relatively ree fromviolenceconsideringhehuge hrong, ostly oung eople.CityDeputy Supt.John mith, n chargeof the police detachment,aid, "Only two or threefights, uicklybrokenup,marred n otherwiseerfect ay."

(Quotations n the firstthree paragraphswere taken fromspeeches

given t the rally, lthough heir ourcewas not dentifiedn thestory.)Although he reporter ersonally greed with all the statements ndtermsenclosed n quotationmarks, the quotation marks enabled thereporter o claim he had not interjected is opinions nto the story.They made the story objective" nd protected im fromhis superiors.This reporter eceivedmostof the demonstrationssignments,lthoughhe was sympathetico thedemonstrators,nd his editorswerenot.Hadhis sympathies een perceived, e would not have been sent to futuredemonstrations.urthermore,is storieswould have been substantially

altered, nd theywerenot. ndeed,among hemselves,he editors raisedthis reporter'swork. n sum, the reportermanipulatedhis superiors,interjectingisownviews,by following procedure hey ssociatedwithobjectivity."

4. Structuringnformationn an appropriate equence.-Structuring

11 Both the age distribution nd the use of shifts t the observednewspaperfacilitatedthe editors'misperception f thisreporter. he top editorswere aged between45 and65. The reporterwas in his early thirties.The editors came to work at 6:00 P.M.

The reporter eft work at 6:00 P.M. Although the editors and reportersmight be in

the newsroom t the same time,the editors tended to socialize with older reporterswith whomtheymaintained ong-standing riendshipss they exchangedgossipbeforesitting down to work. Furthermore, ince the young reporterunder discussionsported short hair and conservative lothes, he editors had few cues to his politicalbeliefs. The reporter's ability to mask his views is of some importancebecausesuperiors tend to identify objectivity" with the particular"slant" or news policyof their organization see Breed 1955).

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informationn an appropriate equence s also a procedure o denoteobjectivitywhich s exemplifieds a formal ttribute f news stories.

The most mportantnformationoncerningn event s supposed o bepresentedn the first aragraph,nd each succeeding aragraph houldcontain nformationf decreasingmportance. he structuref a newsstory heoreticallyesembles n inverted yramid.

This is the most problematic ormal spect of objectivity or thenewsman. iscussing heother hree ormalttributes,he newsmanmaystate that he presented onflictingruth-claims;hatthe supplementaryevidence xisted, nd he merely ollected t; that quotations nd itemsin quotationmarks representhe opinionsof others,not his opinions.However, ven though reportermay unconsciouslyecondguesshiseditors s he chooses lead paragraph,nd so bow to company olicies,he is the personresponsible orthe story's ead. He cannotclaimthechoicebelongsto someone lse. The reporter an only invokeprofes-sionalism nd claim the ead is validatedby his news udgment.

Invokingnews udgment professionalcumen) is an inherentlye-fensive tance, or news udgment"s theability o choose objectively"between nd among ompetingfacts,"to decide which facts"are more

"important" r "interesting." Important"and "interesting" enotecontent.n otherwords,discussing he structuringf information,henewsmanmustrelatehisnotions f "important"r "interesting"ontent.

To someextent henewsman's ifficultiesre mitigatedy thefamiliarformula hatnews concerns who,what,when,where,why, nd how."These"fivew's" are calledthe most material acts" bout a story. hus,ifthenewsmanan claimhe has led with he "mostmaterial hings," ecan claimhehas been "objective."For example, xplaining ow he wouldwrite he story bout theanti-war,nti-draftemonstration,hereporter

said,First 'll lead with hemostmaterial hings. How manypeoplewerethere-that'sthe story . . thenumber fdraft ardsturnedn.... In thesecondparagraph],'ll set the one. hen 'll go into he peeches.hehard acts o first.

Yet newspapersnd reportersmay notconcur n the identificationfmaterial facts. This same reporterhad skimmed n account of thedemonstrationnanother aper ndhad called t "biased."He complainedthat"therewerethousands f people [at thedemonstration],nd maybeall but a fewwerepeaceful, et theafternoonaper ed with n incidentabout violence."Obviously, he reporter rom he afternoon ewspaperwould ounter hathisaccountwas "objective," hat heviolencewas "themostmaterial hing," he "who,what,where,when,why, nd how" ofthestory.As amplydemonstratedn theliterature, ewspapers iffern

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their hoiceofmaterial facts," heirnewspolicies,12ut all claimto be'objective."

If thenewsmen ave trouble dentifyingmaterialfacts"evenwithinthebounds ftheirnewspaper'solicy, heymaypractice nother ption.Instead of discussinghe formal ttributes f an individualnewsstory,theymaydescribe heformalttributesf a newspaper.

IV

A newspapers divided nto section nd pages. The first ages contain"straight bjective"generalstories.Specializednews, such as sports,women's nd financial ews,appear on clearlydelineatedpages placedtogetherna section.General torieswhich re not"objective" replacedon eitherthe editorialpage or the "Op Ed" (the page oppositetheeditorial age). There are onlytwoexceptions o thisrule.One is thefeaturetory.Despite telling rgumentshatthefeature tory s a newsstory H. Hughes 1940), newsmennsistently istinguish etweenthetwo forms e.g., Mott 1962). On some newspapers his distinctionsformalized.or instance, heNew YorkTimesrunsfeatures n thefirst

page ofthesecond ection. he other xceptions "newsanalysis"whichmaybe published n the "straight bjective"generalpages if it is ac-companied y thedistinct'3 ormalabel "newsanalysis."

The newsmen se the abel "newsanalysis"to place a barrier etweentheproblematictory nd theother tories n thegeneral ages.Just squotationmarkstheoreticallystablish distancebetween he reporterand a story nd signalthatthematerials nclosedmaybe problematic,<'news nalysis" ndicates hataccompanying aterialsneither epresentthe opinions f themanagement or are necessarilytrue."These ma-

terials re the reporter'snterpretationf the "facts." Readers shouldtrust nd acceptthereporter'snformationccording o their ssessmentof his qualificationsnd attitudes s revealed n his generalwork andpreviousnewsanalyses.

Yet,the nvocationfnews nalysis o suggest bjectivitylso presentsdifficulties.he question How is objective eportingifferentrom ewsanalysis?"turned ut to be themostdifficultorrespondentso answerof all thequestions skedduring woyearsofresearch.'4 ne editorhad

12 Perhaps the best comparison of two newspapers is to be found in Matthews(1959).13 The words "news analysis" are printedin a distincttype, different rom thoseused in the headline,by-line, ead paragraph, and body of the article.14 Several reportersnd an assistantcityeditorsaid theydid not know. The manag-ing editorof the Sunday paper smiledand patted the local news editoron the back

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this to say afterhe had rambledfor 10 minuteswithout eing able tofocuson the subject:

News nalysismplies alue udgments.traightewshas no value udg-mentswhatsoever. . . You can't eliminate he abel "news analysis"andsay nything.o, 'd say n alarm oes ffn the ditor'smindwho hinksthis s loaded nd want o get ff hehook. Although]hereader hinksthe abel . . [is] weighty nd ponderous, he key point s the number nddegree fvalue udgmentsndocumentedtthe ime.

Although he editordelineated formal echnique o alert the reader,he could not say what determines he "number nd degree of valuejudgments ndocumentedt the time."Furthermore,he editor ecognizesthediscrepancy etween hereasonforhis action nd the news onsumer'sinterpretationf that ction.Faced with hisdilemma, he newsman gaininvokeshis professional ews judgment-meaninghis experience ndcommon ense which nable him to assess "important" nd "interesting""facts."

V

It would appear that news udgment s the sacred knowledge, he secretability f the newsmanwhichdifferentiatesim from therpeople. Thenewsman's xperiencewith interorganizationelationships, is dealingswith his own and other organizations nableshim to claim this newsjudgment s well as "objectivity." e makes threegeneralizations:

1. Most individuals, s news sources,have an axe to grind.To bebelieved, n individualmustprovehis reliabilitys a news ource hrougha processof trial and error.15

2. Some individuals,uch as committeehairmen,re in a position o

knowmore hanother eople n an organization. lthough heymayhavean axe to grind, heir nformations probablymore"accurate" becausetheyhave more facts" at theirdisposal.

3. Institutionsnd organizations ave procedures esigned o protectboththe institutionnd thepeople who come ntocontactwith t. Thesignificancef either statementr a "no comment"must be assessedaccording o thenewsman's nowledge f institutional rocedures.

The newsmen end to lump these three generalizations ogether yspeaking f the extent o which somethingmakes ense."Two examples,

each involving tatementshe top editors efused oprint,llustratehis.

when he heard me ask the latter this question. For a text on the topic, see Mac-Dougall (1968).

15Shibutani (1966) notes that two reporters missed exclusive stories concerningMarshall Goering's uicidebecause the news source-a prison guard-had not provenhis reliability.

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One concerns he egal system;the other, hepolitical ystem. othareinstitutions ith which the newsmen laim familiarity ased upon ex-

perience.Example 1.-A fatherwho might e accusedof child neglect esulting

in thedeath of his daughter rom ysticfibrosis isited he city roomtoprotesthis innocence.A storyconcerning he father's ale of woe wasapprovedby the suburbannews editorbut rejectedby the local newseditor nd the assistantmanaging ditorwho insisted hat the suburbannewseditor hould have knownnot to have approvedthe story.Thesetwoeditors ased their ejection n two factors: he story ontained oomanyunanswereduestions, nd the editors mputedmeaning o policebehavior.As one put it,"When the police and district ttorney utup aflap,you know somethings wrong."The editors nsisted:

Newspapers ave to follow he egal steps s they ppear n a normalarrest-indictment-trialequence, nless henewspapersre convincedherehasbeen miscarriagef ustice.... Thennewspapersanpull ut ll thestops ndcrusade or he ccused.

This case was not a clearcutmiscarriage f justice because thereweretoo many unanswereduestions.For instance, he submitted torydidnot say whether he child was under medicaltreatment. he editorswondered, Could the child have died withoutneglect?"More im-portantly, hen he ocalnews ditor honed hepolice seeking dditionalinformationbout thefather, he police"clammed p." Based upon theirexperiencewith police procedure, he editorsassumed the police wereconsideringndicting heman. Since the "policewould not ndict"with-out the legal proof required o provea case in court,they concluded"there's omething ishybout this." To run thestory, he newsmen elt

theyhad to get "morefacts"which ounter logical ssessment f policeprocedure.Presenting upplementaryvidence (a formal ttribute fobjectivity), henewspapers ould claim it had been objective.As oneeditor ut it,

The storys similar oone about manwhosewifehad beenmurdered,andthemanhasnotbeen rrested,uthe hasbeen oldnot o eave own.Theman oes o all thenewspapersndtries oclear imselff naccusa-tionnotyetmade. f a week ater heman s indictedormurderndwehave rintedis tory,ow do we, thenewspapers,ook?

Example 2.-White, the top political reporter, overed the 1968McCarthy-Johnsonew Hampshireprimary.He wantedMcCarthytowin.Comparatively, anyof White'sstatements eredeletedfromhisstoriesbecause the editorsfelt he was engaging n unwarranted ewsanalysis.Accordingo thenewsmen's xperience ithpolitics, he eaderof a politicalparty e.g., thepresident) ontrolst, and partymembers

673




support he man in power because of his institutionalizedffice,venthough heymightpersonally isagreewithhim.

One of the statementsut from n articleWhite had written laimedPresident ohnsonwas "running cared" n the New Hampshire rimary.The assistant managing ditor deleted this statement ecause it goesagainst any political experience o assume that a president ontrollingall thepower n his partywouldhave difficultiesgainst a little-knownmaverick unior senator. As the local news editor who also favoredMcCarthy xplained,White s supposed o be a political xpert, nd hissentenceswerenot warranted y the facts.Whitewas writing ull a lotof the time."To emphasize is point, he editornoted White had evenbet himJohnson ouldnot be a candidate n the November lection. heeditor escribed his s "politicalhogwash" nd "wishful hinking." fterall, he noted, every twentieth-centuryresident ad run fora secondterm, ad sufficientower o insure is party'snomination,nd politicianslovepower,

One might conclude that the newsman'sorganizational xperienceprejudices im againstpossibilities hich ounter is preexistingxpecta-tions.From the pointof view of the newsmen, hough, heir xperiences

with other organizations ver a period of time validate their newsjudgments nd may be reduced o common ense. By "common ense"the newsmenmean what most newsmen old to be trueor take forgranted.

VI

Common ense plays a centralrole in the assessment f news content,since the content f a news story s multitudinousfacts," nd common

sensemay determine hether piece of information aybe accepted sa "fact." For instance, onsider he supporting vidence cceptedas a"fact" in the objectivedescription f "Communist ropaganda." f thedisputed rticlehad listedDas Kapital as a publication eenat thesceneofthe tory, he term Communist" ould upposedly ave been ustified.Das Kapital s commonlyssociatedwith ommunismnd is notgenerallyviewed s a textconcerninghe theory f economics.

Undocumentedfacts" which he newsmencceptas proven evealtheextent o whichnews udgmentsmay be based upon common ense.Forinstance,whendiscussing ews analysis, he ocal news editorhad noted,"Everyone says Gene McCarthy appeals to the intellectual lement.That's in news tories, ut there's o documentation.here'sno time ndspacefordocumentation,o youmake t a flat tatement. don'tknow fit's true. s it statisticallyccurate?"

Newsmenwillniot rint s "fact"statements hich ontradictommon

674




sense. Rivers 1967, p. 187) reports ohnF. Kennedy's xperiences acub reporter orking orHearst nternational ews Service fterWorld

War II. Since Kennedyhad livedin Englandbefore he war and "hadwritten book on Britain's wkwardmilitarytance, [he] was sent to. . . report he upcoming lection.One of his first tories redicted hatWinstonChurchill'sConservativeswould lose the elections. . . 'Nosooner idthat tory itNew York,'Kennedy ecalled ater, than got arocket rom earstpracticallyhargingme withbeingout of mymind.'"Kennedy's story contradicted he American ommon ense assessmentby insistinghat popular oliticianwho had successfullyed his countrythrough war would not be reelected.His challenged expert"opinioncontradicted hat everyone new" nd "took forgranted." o it was not"factual."

As Schutz 1962, p. 75) so aptlyput it, "It must ufficeo pointoutthat all knowledge aken for grantedhas a highly ocialized structure,that s, it is assumed o be takenforgranted, ot onlyby me,but byus,by everyonemeaningeveryone hobelongs o us')." It wouldbe inter-esting o exploremoredeeplythesortsof informationewsmen iew as"facts," statementswhose accuracycan be taken for granted. have

suggested lsewhere 1969) thatnotions he newsman akes forgrantedare actuallya picture f his viewof social and political reality.Whilesuch an observation emands reexaminationf a news organization'sinterorganizationalelationships,n intensive xploration f this topicgoes beyond he scope of this paper.Here it must suffice hat (1) somecontentsmaybe accepted s "facts" f theymake sense, nd (2) thenewsjudgmentwhich ustifies sense" seemsto be sacred professionalnowl-edge. But specialprofessional nowledges an inadequatedefense gainstcriticism,ince critics re frequentlyttacking hat veryknowledge.

VII

Exploring he newsman's otion f objectivity, have thus far examined(1) news proceduress formal ttributesf news stories nd newspapers,(2) judgments ased upon interorganizationalelationships,nd (3)commonense s thebasis for ssessing ews ontent. lthough he formalattributesf news stories nd newspapersmay presentproblems o thenewsman,hey enable him to claimobjectivity,nd his claims may beassessedby the reader.

Because of the diverse ressures o whichthe newsman s subject,hefeels hathe mustbe able to protect imself, o state, I am an objectiveprofessional." e mustbe able to develop trategies hich nable him tostate, "This story is objective, mpersonal, etached." Similarly, heeditors nd newspapermanagementeel thattheymustbe able to state

675




that the newscolumns re "objective" nd that newspolicy nd editorialpolicyare distinct rom ne another.Because readersdo not have news

judgment nd, whenchallenging ewsmen, end to act as thoughtheydo,16 claiming bjectivity ased upon news judgmentmay not satisfycritics.

However, itingformal ttributes f news stories nd of newspapers,including hosewhichmaybe problematicsuch as Das Kapital ustifyingthe term Communistropaganda"), he newsmen an point o proof hattheyhave distinguishedetweenwhat theythink nd whattheyreport.They may claim to have (1) presented onflictingossibilities elatedto truth-claims,2) presented upplementaryvidenceto support a"fact," (3) used quotationmarks to indicate that the reporters notmaking truth-claim,4) presented he most "materialfacts" first,nd(5) carefully eparated facts" from pinionsby usingthe label "newsanalysis." t wouldappear that news procedures xemplifieds formalattributesf news stories nd newspapers re actually trategies hroughwhichnewsmen rotect hemselvesrom ritics nd layprofessionallaimto objectivity,specially ince their pecial professionalnowledges notsufficientlyespected y news consumers nd may indeedeven be the

basis of critical ttack.Although uch proceduresmayprovidedemon-strable vidence fan attempt o obtain objectivity,hey annotbe saidto provide bjectivity.ndeed, t has been suggested hatsuch procedures(1) constituten invitation o selective erception,2) mistakenlynsistthe "facts speak forthemselves,"3) are a discreditingevice and ameansof introducing he reporter's pinion, 4) are bounded by theeditorial olicyof a particular ews organization,nd (5) misleadthenewsconsumer y suggestinghat "news analysis" s weighty, onderous,or definitive.n sum,there s a distinct iscrepancy etween he ends

sought nd those chieved.Nor is there clearrelationshipetween heends sought (objectivity)and the means used (the described newsprocedures).

This interpretation as several interestingheoreticalmplications.First, t supportsEverettHughes's contention 1964, pp. 94-98) thatoccupationsdevelop ritualizedprocedures o protectthemselves romblame.He notes, In teaching," n occupation ike journalism, whereends are very ll-defined-and onsequentlymistakes re equally so-where helay world s quickto criticize nd to blame,correct andlingbecomesritualas muchas or evenmore than an art. If a teacher an

16 Since newsmenare not surroundedby a technical mystique, t looks as thoughalmost anyone could do the newsman's ob. After all, almost everyone gossips. Fora comparisonof news and gossip, see Shibutani (1966) and Parks and Burgess(1967).

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prove hathe has followed he ritual, lame s shifted rom imself o themiserable hild or student; and failure an be and is put upon them"

(pp. 96, 97). Examining he ritualistic ehavior of such second-rankprofessionalss pharmacistsnd nurses, ughes ontinues,We get a hintof whatmay be the deeperfunction f the art, cult and ritual f variousoccupations. hey mayprovide set of emotional nd even organizationalchecksand balances against both the subjective nd objectiverisks ofthe trade" p. 197; emphasis dded). Fromthispointof view, he formalattributes f news stories and of newspaperswould appear to entailstrategic ituals ustifying claim to objectivity. hey enable a newsmanto say, pointing o his evidence, I am objectivebecause I have usedquotationmarks."

Second, these findingsmay have bearing on notions of objectivityused by other professionals. s previously uggested, ocial scientistsdistinguishetween hemselvesnd others y noting heir wn proclivitytowardreflexive xamination f philosophic ssumptions. et Gouldner(1970, p. 249), joining C. WrightMills in speaking f "transpersonalreplicability,"uggests, In this notion, bjectivity implymeans that asociologist as described is procedures ith uch explicitnesshatothers

employinghem n the same problemwill come to the same conclusions.In effect,hen, his s a notionof objectivity s technical outinizationand rests, t bottom, n the codificationf the research rocedureshatwereemployed.At most, however, his is an operational efinition fobjectivity hich resumablyellsus whatwe mustdo in order o justifyan assertion hat some particular indings objective. t does not, how-ever,tell us very muchabout what objectivitymeans conceptually ndconnotatively."n sum, Gouldner ccuses sociologists f ducking piste-mologicalproblemsby hiding behind formal echniques.He paints a

picture f sociological bjectivitys strategic itual.'7Other rofessionsnd occupations quate objectivity ith heability o

remain ufficientlympersonal o followroutineprocedures ppropriateto a specific ase. For instance, he awyer's bjective tanceprovides heeveryday aying, The lawyerwhohas himselfor client s employed ya fool."The rule that doctors annotoperateon familymembersup-posedly rotects oththedoctor nd patients rom ismistakes. nvolved

17 Other statements y sociologists eem to support this charge. Speaking of sociolo-

gists' reactions to studies of premaritalbehavior, Udry (1967) claims (although hedoes not offer upporting vidence) that sociologistsquote studies with conclusionsthey approve, but challenge the methodology f articles whose findings ffend heirown values. Reynolds (1970) challenges footnoted scientificfacts by tracing thenatural historyof a perpetuated scientific" iction.Goode (1970) discusses researchon marijuana in the context of the "politics of reality." Gouldner feels (1970, p.254) "the realm of objectivity s the realm of the sacred in social science."

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emotionally,t is felt, he doctormightnot follow ppropriatemedicalprocedures."8

In all these examples, bjectivity efers o routine rocedureswhichmay be exemplifieds formal ttributes quotation marks, evels ofsignificance,egal precedents, -rays) and whichprotect he professionalfrommistakes nd fromhis critics.t appears the word "objectivity"sbeing used defensivelys a strategic itual.However,while myfindingssubstantiate his conclusion oncerninghe newsman's se of the word"objectivity," eneralizationso otherprofessionsnd occupationsmustawaita systematicxamination f theiruse of the word "objectivity"nthe context f theirwork.'9

REFERENCES

Benet, James. 1970. "Interpretation nd Objectivity n Journalism." n Academicson the Line, edited by Arlene K. Daniels and Rachel Kahn-Hut. San Francisco:Jossey-Bass.

Breed, Warren. 1955. "Social Control in the Newsroom: A Functional Analysis."Social Forces 33:326-35.

Ellul, Jacques. 1966. Propaganda. New York: Knopf.Emerson, Joan. 1970. "Behavior in Private Places: Sustaining Definitions f Reality

in GynecologicalExamination." In Recent Sociology No. 2, edited by Hans P.Dreitzel. New York: Macmillan.Goode, Erich. 1970. The Marijuana Smokers.New York: Basic.Gouldner, Alvin. 1970. "The Sociologist as Partisan: Sociology and the Welfare

State." In The Sociologyof Sociology, editedby Larry T. Reynoldsand Janice M.Reynolds. New York: David McKay.

Hughes, Everett C. 1964. Men and Their Work. Glencoe, Ill.: Free Press.Hughes, Helen M. 1940. News and the Human Interest Story. Chicago: University

of Chicago Press.Jacobs, Ruth. 1970. "The Journalistic nd Sociological Enterprises s Ideal Types."

AmericanSociologist5:348-50.Klapper, Joseph. 1960. The Effects f Mass Communication.New York: Free Press.

MacDougall, C. D. 1968. InterpretiveReporting.New York: Macmillan.March, James G., and Herbert A. Simon. 1967. Organizations.New York: Wiley.

18 Doctors insisttheir attitudeis "objective" or "medical" when dealing with pro-cedures fraughtwith more personal meaning, such as gynecologicalexaminations.AlthoughEmerson (1970) does not reportthat doctors use the word "objectivity,"she does state (1970, p. 78), an "implicationof the medical definition s that thepatient s a technicalobject to the staff. t is as if the staffworked on an assemblyline forrepairingbodies; similarbody parts roll by and the staffhave a particularjob to do on them." In otherwords, the medical staff emphasizesan impersonalprocedure.

19The recognitionof objectivityas a strategicritual also raises other problemspertinent o the stuidy f mass media, particularly o the study of theireffects. ostrategicrituals enhance the credibilityof news reports? Does their use modifyindividuals'predilectionso behave in one way or another? What is the interaction,if any, between thesestrategies nd content? f there s an interaction, oes it affectthe audience's reaction? Such questionshave both political and sociologicalsignifi-cance,but exceptfor studiesof the effect f presenting pposing views (reviewedbyKlapper 1960, pp. 113-17), theyhave yet to be explored.

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Matthews, T. S. 1959. The Sugar Pill. New York: Simon & Shuster.Mott, Frank L. 1962. The News in America. Cambridge,Mass.: Harvard University

Press.Park, Robert, and Ernest Burgess. 1967. The City. Chicago: Universityof ChicagoPress.

Radin, Paul. 1957. PrimitiveMan as Philosopher.New York: Dover.. 1960. The World of PrimitiveMan. New York: Grove.

Reynolds, Larry T. 1970. "A Note on the Perpetuation of a Scientific iction." InThe Sociology of Sociology, edited by Larry T. Reynolds and Janice M. Reynolds.New York: David McKay.

Rivers, William. 1967. The Opinionmakers. oston: Beacon.Rovere, Richard. 1960. Senator Joe McCarthy. New York: Meridian.Schutz, Alfred. 1962. Collected Papers I. The Hague: Martinum Nijhoff.Shibutani, Tamotsu. 1966. ImprovisedNews. New York: Bobbs-Merrill.

Tuchman, Gaye. 1969. "News, the Newsman's Reality." Ph.D. dissertation, randeisUniversity.

Udry, J. Richard. 1967. Social Context of Marriage. New York: Lippincott.Weinstein,Eugene. 1966. "Toward a Theory of InterpersonalTactics." In Problems

in Social Psychology, edited by Carl Backman and Paul Second. New York:McGraw-Hill.

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ritual of objectivity

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