lifelong journalist

2018/08/23 04:12:37 網誌分類: 生活

23 Aug

        　　Does the media report fake (not real, false) news? I have been a lifelong journalist and I can tell you only a very small section of the traditional media reports fake news. Most reputable newspapers, and TV and radio stations, take pains to make sure what they report is accurate. There is, of course, a lot of fake news on social media. US President Donald Trump constantly accuses the traditional media, especially CNN, the Washington Post, and the New York Times, of fake news. I read the Washington Post and the New York Times online every day and sometimes watch CNN. They do not report fake news but their news reports are often critical of Trump. But Trump regards news reports critical of him as fake news.

        　　The word “lifelong” used this way means all of a person’s life but not, of course, including when a person was a baby. If you are a lifelong journalist, it means you have been a journalist all your working life. Traditional media refers to the media before digital or new media. Newspapers, TV, and radio are part of the traditional media. The internet and online newspapers are part of the digital or new media. Social media, such as Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp are also part of the new media. If you take pains to do something, it means you try very hard to do it. When I was a reporter I took pains to make sure my news reports were accurate.

        　　A New York Times editor warned last week Trump's constant accusations that the media reports fake news are sending a message to despots that they can ignore or disrespect the media. I totally agree with him. A despot is a person who rules with absolute power, often in an oppressive (harsh, dictatorial) way. Other words for despot are dictator, autocrat, and tyrant. There are not many despots nowadays but most people say North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is a despot. If the American president, who is supposed to be the leader of the free world, says the media reports fake news, despots would of course have an excuse to disrespect the media.

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        　　媒體會否報道假（fake）新聞？我做了一輩子（lifelong）的新聞工作者，可以告訴你，只有非常小部份的傳統媒體（traditional media）會報道假（fake）新聞。大部份有信譽的報章、電視台和電台都煞費苦心（take pains）確保他們所報道的是真確的。當然，社交媒體（social media）上就有許多假（fake）新聞。美國總統特朗普經常指責傳統媒體（traditional media），特別是CNN、《華盛頓郵報》和《紐約時報》，發放假（fake）新聞。我每天都上網閱讀《華盛頓郵報》和《紐約時報》，有時也會收看CNN，他們不會報道假（fake）新聞，但他們的新聞報道就不時批評特朗普。然而，特朗普卻將批評他的新聞報道視為假（fake）新聞。

        　　在上文中lifelong一字是指一輩子的、畢生的，但當然不包括還是嬰孩的時期。若你是個 lifelong journalist，即是說你整個工作生涯都是在做新聞工作者。Traditional media是指在數碼（digital）或新媒體（new media）出現前的傳統媒體，報章、電視和電台也屬於傳統媒體（traditional media）。網絡或網上報章就屬於數碼（digital）或新媒體（new media）。Social media，例如臉書、推特和 WhatsApp這些社交媒體，也屬於新媒體（new media）。若你 take pains to do something，意即你竭盡全力去做某事。當我還是記者時，我亦煞費苦心（took pains）確保我的新聞報道是準確無誤的。

        　　上星期，一名《紐約時報》編輯警告說，特朗普持續不斷的指責傳媒報道假（fake）新聞，是在向專制的暴君們（despots）傳遞着一個信息，就是他們可以忽視或不尊重傳媒。我完全同意他的說法。A despot就是以專權統治國家的人，手法多為嚴苛而專橫的（oppressive）。其他跟despot意近的字有 dictator、autocrat和tyrant。今時今日世上的專制暴君（despots）已不多，但大部份人也會說北韓領袖金正恩是個獨裁的暴君（despot）。若連理應是自由世界領袖的美國總統，也說傳媒在報道假（fake）新聞，那當然，專制暴君們（despots）就更有藉口去輕蔑傳媒了。

        mickchug@gmail.com

        中譯:七刻

        Michael Chugani 褚簡寧

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