Cites journalism educator Don Ranley who urges maintaining the wall between editorial and advertising, in the interest of reader credibility. "I am not a businessman, but it has to be good business to be trusted."
Reports that focus group research among farm readers shows they want information that is not a commercial on the editorial pages they read. "Isn't it strange? The very credibility these folks crave is the first thing to disappear when publishers agree to relax their standards."
Cross, Al (author / Director, Institute of Rural Journalism and Community Issues, University of Kentucky )
Format:
Commentary
Publication Date:
2018-03
Published:
USA
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 8 Document Number: D10311
Notes:
2 pages., Online from the Institute of Rural Journalism and Community Issues, University of Kentucky. Published earlier in the Publishers' Auxiliary, newspaper of the National Newspaper Association., "We need more letters from the editor, not just statements of general principle, but explanations of how and why we do certain tings. If we demand transparency from officials and institutions, we must practice it ourselves."
19 pages., Online via UI e-subscription., Authors examined impacts of efforts by Report for America (RFA) to strengthen the capacity of local news and increase trust from the perspective of two communities: a neighborhood on Chicago's West Side and a rural county in eastern Kentucky. Findings illustrated "the influence of place and power dynamics on how residents navigate trustworthiness factors." They also revealed lack of feedback loops to provide coverage for communities.
