Журналист Джордж Клаассен призывает СМИ перенять научный подход к проверке фактов

Drawing lessons from the Andrea Johnson saga, George Claassen argues that journalists should borrow scientists’ commitment to verification and scepticism – greeting every claim with “show me” – to stay independent, admit mistakes openly, and resist intimidation in an age of social-media rumour and legal threats. “How can we tell the facts, or the probable facts, from the chaff? We can borrow from science. We can try to judge all possible claims of fact by the same methods and rules of evidence that scientists use to derive some reasonable guidance in scores of unsettled issues.” The fallout about Andrea Johnson, former head of the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC), and opinion articles by Adriaan Basson, editor-in-chief of News24, and Pieter du Toit, head of News24’s investigative team, reminded me of these words by Victor Cohn, probably one of the best health reporters journalism has produced over a century. Johnson’s disgrace and tragic fall have led to serious self-examination by numerous journalists reporting about Johnson, even apologising like Du Toit for not being more aware of her feet of clay while the evidence was piling up, most noticeably visible in the impeccable reporting of Karyn Maughan, News24’s award-winning legal reporter on the ground in courts and at the Madlanga Commission. READ | Pieter du Toit: An apology - I was wrong about Andrea Johnson – and it stings Cohn emphasised a very important point about how journalists’ modus operandi should be drawn from the copybook of scientists: although the two professions are different, there are many similarities in the way journalists and scientists operate. As an article by environmental author and scientist Melanie Lenart at the University of Arizona emphasised, they have a common goal: Science and journalism share a basic commitment to report to the public verifiable facts, avoiding their own personal biases and preconceived ideas, weighing as far as possible multiple sides of an issue, and relying heavily on extensive and incisive research. The Johnson saga has tested the accountability of journalists’ reporting about complex legal issues, trying to make sense of hours and hours of testimony in courts and at the Madlanga Commission, as well as deciphering through personal contact the masks individuals often wear to fool and mislead. READ | Pierre de Vos: Madlanga uncovered the rot – now comes the hard part But it has also brought to the fore our responsibility as journalists to admit mistakes openly, to re-evaluate our commitment to the ethical values set out by the South African Press Code we subscribe to as part of the Press Council’s self-regulatory system. What lessons can we learn from this? I believe we, as journalists, in an age where social media runs amok with rumours and conspiracy theories not based on any verifiable evidence, should take a leaf from the book of scientists, as Lenart and Cohn rightly point out. Two aspects embedded in the Press Code come to mind, also part and parcel of the way scientists go about their research: Firstly, how do we stay fiercely independent from all the sources, influencers, and roleplayers we report about, research, and investigate; secondly, have we verified and tested what we believe we have found? This is not how social media works, and as journalists, we should always remember this to make our diligence independent and to apply verification methods a sine qua non of our daily operations. We can take a leaf from the book of scientists such as the astronomer and cosmologist Carl Sagan who pointed out that “extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence”, and that we should all have switched on baloney detectors. To come back to Cohn emphasising the relationship and link between scientists and journalists: “Without being cynical and believing nothing – an automatic disqualification for any journalist – a reporter should be equally sceptical and greet every claim by saying ‘show me’,” he wrote in his benchmark book News & Numbers – A Guide to Reporting Statistical Claims and Controversies in Health and Other Fields. A last observation about the comments of some readers castigating News24, Basson and Du Toit in the comments section of their opinion articles: No, it is not shameful to admit mistakes; it is part of being accountable, as the Press Code requires. READ | Adriaan Basson: We were not hard enough on Johnson and IDAC Journalists have a very difficult task when people we deal with too often lie, obfuscate, try to lead us up the garden path, protecting their turf, not to be exposed when they have erred and acted fraudulently. They even threaten journalists with death. And many are masterful actors who could have won the Oscars if they had chosen different careers. This makes our switched-on baloney detectors even more important. The latest trend and tactic is to threaten News24 and trustworthy media with letters from attorneys, trying to silence diligent reporters with legal action, even bypassing the mechanisms of the Press Council to lodge complaints about what the media report. Some understanding of this is, unfortunately, too often absent from some commentators below our stories or on social media. - George Claassen is News24’s public editor and a board member of the Organisation of News Ombuds & Standards Editors. *Want to respond to the columnist? Send your letter or article to [email protected] with your name and town or province. You are welcome to also send a profile picture. We encourage a diversity of voices and views in our readers’ submissions and reserve the right not to publish any and all submissions received. Disclaimer: News24 encourages freedom of speech and the expression of diverse views. The views of columnists published on News24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of News24. *Want deeper context into what’s going on in the world? Read Friday Briefing every week to stay in the loop with opinion and analysis on current political, social, and economic issues affecting South Africa. 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