ABSTRACT
John Dewey's philosophy seems particularly timely and relevant for journalism today. The vitality of public life was a major concern of Dewey's writing, and today it has become a central issue for many journalists. This chapter summarizes the key elements of the realist/objectivist view embodied in traditional journalism ethics and then contrasts them with the pragmatist view. In the realist view, the primary social function of the news media is the collecting, organizing, and disseminating of information. Some social critics, such as British sociologist John Thompson, question the viability of participatory democracy in a mass media age. An ethical theory grounded in the philosophical tradition of pragmatism offers the news media a much more promising means of fulfilling the social role envisioned for them by democratic theory, that is, enabling citizens to play an active role in self-governance.
