Stop TikTok dancing and just give us the news
I understand why people don’t trust the news media anymore.
It’s a sentiment I share deeply, a growing discomfort that has solidified into a firm conviction. For years, I watched the news with a certain reverence, a belief that the anchors and journalists gracing our screens were conduits of impartial truth. They delivered facts, reported events and meticulously avoided injecting their personal opinions or political leanings into the narrative.
They seemed to operate under an unspoken oath: to inform, not to influence; to present, not to persuade. That era, it seems, has become a relic of the past and its absence is acutely felt in the crumbling foundations of public trust.
Today, when I tune in, I’m often met with a starkly different panorama. The new generation of anchors and reporters, eager to cultivate a personal brand as much as a professional one, often blur the lines between serious journalism and social media spectacle.
I scroll through my feeds and see them making TikTok videos dancing on the set, showing off their outfit before the show, or applying their makeup while narrating the process. They’re plugging local companies on their personal social media pages, sometimes explicitly, sometimes subtly, as if they’re endorsements rather than dispatches from a neutral observer. When I encounter such content, I find it profoundly difficult to take them seriously as purveyors of objective truth.
This isn’t merely about aesthetics or a generational divide in communication styles; it strikes at the very heart of journalistic integrity.
When a news personality transforms into a wannabe “influencer,” their credibility as an unbiased source erodes. It’s gone. In an instant.
How can I trust a segment on local business development when the reporter covering it just promoted a specific boutique on their Instagram story? How can I believe in the impartiality of a political analysis when the anchor’s personal brand on TikTok leans heavily into a particular social or political agenda? The perception of neutrality, once a cornerstone of the news industry, is shattered by these overt acts of personal branding and self-promotion. News, at its core, should be about the story, not the storyteller’s sartorial choices or dance moves.
My perspective isn’t just an isolated observation; it’s one that’s reinforced by those who’ve lived and breathed the industry’s purported golden age.
The consequences of this shift are far-reaching. When the public can no longer discern objective reporting from opinion, or professional duty from personal brand promotion, trust evaporates. This erosion of trust isn’t just a minor inconvenience; it’s a societal threat. A well-informed populace, equipped with reliable, unbiased information, is fundamental to a functioning democracy.
When news becomes a mere extension of entertainment or personal endorsement, it fosters cynicism, deepens polarization and leaves citizens vulnerable to misinformation from less scrupulous sources. We lose our shared basis of reality, our collective understanding of facts, and our ability to engage in productive discourse.
I believe it’s time for the news industry to look inward and reflect on the values it claims to uphold. The pursuit of eyeballs and engagement on social media cannot come at the expense of credibility. The job of a journalist is not to be a celebrity, an “influencer,” or a brand ambassador. It is to be a steadfast, impartial observer and communicator of facts.
Until the industry re-centers itself on these core principles, focusing on substance over spectacle and integrity over personal branding, I fear the chasm of distrust between the public and the media will only continue to widen. And sadly, I’ll continue to understand exactly why.
