Beatrice Groth

Financial journalism is concerned with the publication of money markets, business news, periodicals, general business stories and so forth. However, the journalist’s primary motive is to get the story, practicing with journalism standards, while the business giants, work towards profit maximization, and likely only release information that prospers their trade. The journalists, who cover business news, have access to interactions with business giants, and heads of governments often times, are criticized of bias. Eric Alterman in his book “What Liberal?” argued that journalists are:

‘…no longer the working-class heroes of the Front Page/His Gal Friday lore, elite journalists in Washington and New York are rock-solid members of the political and Financial Establishment whom they write. They dine at the same restaurants and take their vacations on the same Caribbean Islands’ (Alterman, E. 2008, p. 119).

However, generalizing and pointing accusive fingers on all journalists, would be wrong. The financial journalists, like all departments of journalism, are normally trained to abide by journalism ethical standards; to be objective, balanced and devoid of bias. In his book, Balance and Bias in Journalism, Gay Starkey argued that, ‘…objectivity implies detachment from an issue, or at least, representing it in as ‘balanced’ a way as could be achieved by someone without a vested interest in it’ (Starkey, G. 2007, p. xvi).

In conclusion, though corruption exists in almost all professions, devoted journalists ought to abide by the rules and accepting the fact that, journalists deserves to make their living, the primary objective, must be to serve members of the public, by providing them with quality news stories and events without bias. In his book, A History of News quoted Mohandas Gandhi, who said, “I have taken up journalism” – “not for its sake but merely as an aid to what I have conceived to be my mission in life” (Stephens, M. 2007, p. 172).