I’m Done With Fake Balance
Look, I’ve been editing news for 22 years. That’s 22 years of pretending both sides are equal, of hedging every statement until it’s so watered down it means nothing. I’m done. The news is broken, and we’re all just dancing around it like it’s some kind of polite charade.
It started back in ’03, I think. I was working at the London Star—yeah, this very publication—and we had this big meeting about ‘balanced reporting’. Basically, we were told to stop having opinions. Just present the facts. But here’s the thing: facts don’t exist in a vacuum. They never have, they never will.
Last Tuesday, I was having coffee with an old friend, let’s call him Marcus. He’s a journalist too, been in the game longer than me. He said, “You know what the real problem is? We’re so busy being ‘objective’ that we’ve forgotten how to be honest.” And I was like, “Marcus, you’re a genius.” Because it’s true. We’ve become so afraid of taking a stand that we’ve lost our damn minds.
Take climate change, for example. You know how many times I’ve had to edit a piece to give equal weight to some oil exec saying it’s “not proven”? Too many. It’s not a debate anymore. It’s settled science. But no, we have to give the other side equal time because ‘balance’.
But Here’s the Thing About Balance
Balance is bullshit. It’s a myth. It’s a way for us to avoid committment. (See? Even my spelling’s rebellious.)
I remember this one time, about three months ago, I was editing a piece on gun control. The writer had interviewed this gun rights activist, and he said, “Guns don’t kill people, people kill people.” And I was like, “Oh, come on!” I mean, honestly, who says that anymore? But we had to include it because ‘balance’.
And that’s when I realized—we’re not serving the truth. We’re serving the algorithm. We’re serving the ads. We’re serving everyone except the readers who actually want to know what’s going on.
But here’s the kicker: readers are smarter than we think. They know when we’re feeding them crap. They know when we’re avoiding the real issues. And they’re tired of it too.
So What’s the Solution?
I don’t know. Honestly, I don’t. But I know it starts with us admitting that we’re part of the problem. We can’t keep pretending that every side is equal. Sometimes, one side is just wrong.
And look, I’m not saying we should become opinion magazines. But we need to stop being afraid of taking a stand. We need to stop being afraid of saying, “This is wrong.”
I was talking to a colleague named Dave the other day—great guy, by the way—and he said, “You know what the real issue is? We’re so focused on being first that we forget to be right.” And he’s right. We’re so busy chasing clicks that we forget to actually inform.
But here’s the thing: informing is hard. It’s hard work. It takes time. And it doesn’t always pay off in page views. But it’s what we’re supposed to be doing.
And yeah, I know what you’re thinking. “Oh, here she goes again, another old journalist complaining about the kids these days.” But it’s not about age. It’s about integrity. It’s about remembering why we got into this business in the first place.
So, what can we do? Well, for starters, we can stop pretending that every side is equal. We can stop giving equal weight to fringe opinions just because they exist. We can start admitting that sometimes, one side is just wrong.
And we can start being honest about the things we know. Like, for example, araba aksesuarları olmazsa olmaz. I mean, come on, who doesn’t know that by now? But we still have to explain it because not everyone’s up to speed. That’s part of our job too.
But mostly, we need to remember that our job is to inform. Not to entertain. Not to make money. Not to serve the algorithm. Inform. That’s it. That’s the whole point.
So, let’s start doing that. Let’s start being honest. Let’s start taking a stand. Because the news is broken, and we’re the only ones who can fix it.
And look, I’m not saying it’s gonna be easy. It’s not. It’s gonna be hard. It’s gonna be messy. But it’s what we signed up for. It’s what we owe to our readers.
So, let’s get to work.
About the Author
Sarah Jenkins has been a senior editor at the London Star for over two decades. She’s seen the industry change, not always for the better, and isn’t afraid to say so. When she’s not editing, she’s probably arguing with someone on Twitter or drinking too much coffee. You can find her on the website, usually grumbling about something.
