Investigative Journalists: A Dying Breed?

In today's struggling print media industry, investigative journalism has been forced to fight for its relevancy.

With the advent of the Internet and social media, the role of long-form, investigative reporting has lost its edge. In our busy lives we expect news to be immediate and to be succinct.

This week, Christina's seminar presentation shed light on the continued importance that investigative journalism has in a 21st Century media environment. She discussed its role in the context of discerning the truth which reminded me of the central role truth plays in reporting.

For me, Christina's presentation raised some questions:

1. How much of the truth can a journalist really report without undertaking long-form investigation?; and

2. Could (or will) investigative journalism ever become extinct?; and

3. If so, what effect would this have on society?

But first and foremost, what is investigative journalism and what does it bring to the news media table?

According to John Mair, senior lecturer in broadcasting for Coventry University,

'Investigative journalism results in a audience seeing or reading something which somebody did not want them to. It is almost always uncomfortable for the exposed. The best of the craft yields instant and public results.'

In her presentation, Christina highlighted five factors that give investigative journalism its edge on ordinary journalism:

1. It exposes information

2. It generally concerns an important or public issue

3. It reports on information that someone does not want revealed

4. It is created through time-consuming and original research of the reporter

5. It is written for the purpose of inspiring reform

Its importance suggests to me that surely, investigative journalism plays such a crucial role in fair reporting that it can't and won't become extinct. But authorities from within the industry suggest otherwise.

In the following interview segment, former editor of British newspaper The Sunday Times, Sir Harold Evans, discusses the state of modern journalism.

Evans suggests that while some investigative journalists have shifted to the internet, the nature of investigative journalism is generally suited to print media and the advent of the internet has jeopardised its readership. Due to its drain on resources, investigative journalism is becoming a rarity in the print media industry.

Whether or not investigative journalism is on a path to certain extinction is not yet clear, however worrying reports suggest that a media without investigative journalism would be a dangerous one.

It is up to my generation to reignite the demand for investigative journalism to ensure a future of fair and accurate reporting.