Are Journalists Getting Soft?
I had a conversation with a senior colleague bothering on journalism and trauma. He asked one striking question: "Are journalists getting soft?" In the course of our conversation, he talked about how this era or generation of journalists enjoy certain privileges that older journalists didn't enjoy and how things are more or less served on a platter of gold in terms of working conditions for younger ones. He also said journalism is a profession we signed up for and have to face the realities that come with the job. Just like the military and police personnel, there are hazards of the job journalists must face, he insinuated. Then I reminded him that these guys experience PTSD. Journalists consume a lot of traumatic content. 'Regular' citizens consume as well, and it's not good for anyone at all. Journalists have to probe further and sometimes consume a particular traumatic content over and over again to find answers and clues. Now, the past week was p...