Responsibilities of press?

what are the responsibilities of press? give your comments

The press has a duty to be impartial when reporting on events. Generally, they fail on this mission, and end up either sensationalizing an event, or under reporting it. A good example was the Rodney King beating by the LAPD on March 3, 1991. They sensationalized the event, causing the general public to become suspicious and distrustfull towards all white officers across the nation.

On the opposite side of this spectrum, theres the safety issue of tired, fatigued truck drivers, who are constantly getting into accidents on a daily basis across the nation. There were a total of 4,995 fatalities involving big-rig trucks in 2006. Click on this link

http://ai.volpe.dot.gov/crashprofile/cra...

The news publications rely on trucks to receive their rolls of newsprint paper, and tanker shipments of ink. Reporting on the causes of truck accidents may result in more stringent safety laws, which although may reduce truck accidents, will also drive up the cost of trucking fees to send and receive freight. Thus, news organizations across the country have a strict policy of under reporting the severity of truck accidents and truck safety issues.

They also take sides on controversial issues, such as pro-gun rights (2nd amendment of the Constitution) versus anti-gun (more gun control laws, and eventual abolishment of the 2nd amendment). All gun shootings are written and reported to give the impression that the gunman was the registered owner of the firearm, to steer the readers' mind to write their elected officials and introduce more gun-control bills. They never report on incidents where guns were used to defend life and property, such as when a homeowner confronts a burgler with a gun, and the burgler flees for their life. Statistically, most criminals who commit a crime with a gun use a stolen firearm, which the news media doesn't divulge to the public. One example is the Dec. 5 shopping mall killings in Omaha, NB; when Robert Hawkins gunned down 8 shoppers/employees, before turning the gun on himself and commiting suicide. Reporters interviewed family members the very next day, who told reporters the gunman had taken an AK47 from the closet of his step father without permission. Most newspaper neglected to mention the rifle was stolen, giving readers the impression the gunman was the registered owner of the stolen assault rifle.