ABSTRACT
This chapter explores more deeply the sorts of information newsmen view as "facts," statements whose accuracy can be taken for granted. It suggests that notions the newsman takes for granted are actually a picture of his view of social and political reality. The chapter also suggests that "objectivity" may be seen as a strategic ritual protecting newspapermen from the risks of their trade. It examines three factors which help a newsman to define an "objective fact": form, content, and interorganizational relationships. The chapter shows that content and interorganizational relationships, the newsman can only invoke his news judgment; however, he can claim objectivity by citing procedures he has followed which exemplify the formal attributes of a news story or a newspaper. It describes news procedures as formal attributes of news stories and newspapers, judgments based upon interorganizational relationships, and common sense as the basis for assessing news content.
