What is the purpose of journalism or to tell a story?
What is the purpose of telling a journalistic story?
Is it to tell a story, is it to make a story, is it to tell a story for an audience, is it to tell a story for a motive, is it to make a story for your intention, is it to make a story for your winning? And so on… The list could be longer, much longer. I have got a feeling that it is more and more to make a story, not to tell a story.
My daughter is working in an organization as President, for free, idealistic, no money involved with helping the Ukrainian refugees coming to Sweden. They are helping them with contact with people who have places for them to stay at. In their home or roof over their heads in any way, a summer house or something like that. It is a lot of work they are doing in their spare time. I admire her for that. They are also helping the Ukrainian with other contacts in Sweden, all authorities we have that can make their stay here easier. It is people with traumatic experiences from the war she meets, who have lost their entire living, and relatives in Ukraine.
The contact she had with the press at the beginning was quite alright, they asked reasonable questions and were interested in their work and how it went on. But recently it has changed, journalists want a story, it isn't enough with the reality, they want some action. It is crying people meeting their relatives, sad faces, and crying mothers with their little children. That is ok if it helps the refugees, but is it the goal of the journalists?
I don't think so, the goal is a story, paid by the Ukrainians suffering. Would it have been interesting to journalists if it were not the crying people they interviewed? The war is still going on, and will that help stop the war? Perhaps, but I don't think so. They will soon be forgotten and the focus would be on something else.
One journalist phoned my daughter, and asked, "what do you do with those who don't get a place to stay at once". What should she answer? They have got around 4500 volunteers ready to do whatever they can help with. They have 1600 homes that opened the door for the refugees to stay there. They have worked day and night, every single day to find help for those coming. And the journalist asks, "what do you do with those who don't get a place to stay at once". What is the motive of a question like that? To make a story! Not for helping the refugees, not understanding the problem there is. We have all been surprised by this terrible war, and all countries are doing what they can to help those poor people. But the journalist was only in it to make a story! I know, more can be done, but that is a political question. Not a problem an idealistic organization could solve.
So what is the point with these few words I have written?
The point is that we all have a responsibility for what we are writing and what we are doing, we are the future. What we are doing today, is the result of tomorrow. And if we want to change anything, we must start with ourselves. In everything. What world do we want to have? A world of stories, or a world of reality?