The Toronto Star’s Washington correspondent says readers want to see hard evidence before they believe reporters
Julianna Perkins, RSJ
The public’s lack of trust for the media means facts are more important than ever, said Daniel Dale, the Toronto Star’s Washington correspondent, in a talk at Ryerson University Wednesday.
Dale, who also covered Toronto’s city hall from 2010 to early 2015, began by reporting on what he thought would be a sure Clinton win in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. As President Donald Trump’s campaign gained attention and credibility however, Dale’s reporting shifted.
Known for his “Trump tracking” – his consistent fact-checking of Trump’s lies – Dale said that he often gets emails from the public saying that his criticism of the president is biased or comes without proof. “Fact–checking is not biased if you’re calling a wrong out as wrong,” he said. “It’s the fundamental groundwork of journalism.”
A hyper-partisan divide is what Dale said has led to this “erosion of trust.” Media outlets that people perceive as being supportive of the “other side” are labeled as biased or untrustworthy, and, as a result “people just don’t believe reporters’ words anymore,” said Dale.
“Dishonesty is a main story. It’s not the sideshow, it’s the show.”
He found a similar lack of belief from the public here in Canada when it was discovered that the late mayor of Toronto, Rob Ford, was smoking crack cocaine. Dale said he was shocked when, after the Star published the story, a CTV News poll found that despite the Star’s reputable history, 49 per cent of Torontonians did not believe the allegations were true. “What happened was an uproar, but what also happened was nothing,” said Dale, who added that many people saw the paper’s inability to show the video, which they couldn’t ethically obtain, as a lack of proof.
Dale said that publishing evidence, in the form of original documents, photos, and primary sources is key in rebuilding the trust between the media and the public, and that fact-checking is now the center of good reporting. “Dishonesty is a main story,” Dale said. “It’s not the sideshow, it’s the show.”
For an audio version of the story, click below:
