Journalism as a Public Forum

"Journalists must provide a forum for public criticism and compromise" (Kovach & Rosenstiel).  

Without a public forum, the public would not be able to provide their input and opinion.  If journalists do not know what their viewers are thinking, how will they know what to write? Robert Berdahl, the chancellor of the University of California said, "Democracy is based on a fundamental compromise between the majority and the minority."  Compromise is essential in journalism, but without a public forum, journalists would be unaware of the compromise needed.  
"All the forms that journalists use every day can serve the forum-creating function by alerting the public to issues in a way that encourages judgment.  The natural curiosity of humankind means that by reporting details of scheduled events, disclosing wrongdoing, or outlining a developing trend, journalism sets people wondering.  As the public begins to reacht to these dsiclosures,t he community becomes filled the with public voice--on radio call-in shows, television talk shows, personal opinions on op-ed pages, in blogs, chat rooms, and in public opinion polling and elsewhere.  As these voices are heard by those in positions of power, they make it their business to understand the nature of the public opinion developing around the subject.  It is this process that daily re-creates in modern society the ancient forums in which the world's earliest democracies were formed" (Kovach & Rosenstiel).  This quote from the book The Elements of Journalism, is the perfect reason why journalists should provide a marketplace of ideas.  Public forums allow discussion to be evolve.  Juices in the brain start pumping, and the ideas start flowing.  There are so many media outlets available today that allow us to express our opinions.   

Click HERE for a chart that well describes the process of journalism as a public forum.