All journalists are self-absorbed, self-loathing outsiders who exude an air of cynicism to those around them, and will go to any lengths to get their story.
They exploit their subjects after having pretended to form a sort of pseudo-bond with them (though they sometimes carry out a legitimate relationship) and, yes, they always do seem to wind up patching that broken relationship back together again after realizing that they actually do care about the feelings they’ve crushed or the reputations they’ve tarnished.
That description appears pretty accurate, right? Or, does it merely illustrate how journalists are portrayed in films? Hmm…
One such film that comes to mind is ’27 Dresses.’ The character of the journalist in the film is Kevin Doyle, who writes for the commitments section of the New York Journal. After meeting his new subject of interest, Jane, he rummages through her daily planner and finds that her apparent fascination with weddings will make a striking story. He then goes on to interrupt her life with countless phone calls and run ins, getting her to believe that his constant presence is only due to the fact that he will be writing about her sister’s wedding.
Though Kevin secretly loves writing for the commitments section, he leads Jane to believe that he is dissatisfied with his job, and in fact hates weddings. Jane is blind-sided when she is presented with the story in the paper, complete with a number of embarrassing photos.
Would a journalist really do this? Is such an act even ethical?
Similarly, the character of Josie in the older but classic film ‘Never Been Kissed’ is on her way to blemishing the reputation of a teacher at the school that she enrolls in as a student under cover to find her first story as a reporter. The flashbacks in the film illuminate the fact that she was awkward and socially isolated during her adolescence and since then, hasn’t made many strides. She encapsulates the image of the typical nerd, and as stated in the title, has never been kissed. It is obvious that she is dissatisfied with the way that she is, and only finds temporary gratification when she changes her image entirely to be liked by her peers. Are all journalists so detached and self-detesting as Josie is for almost all of the film? I think not.
In the film ‘Capote’ journalist Truman Capote is irritatingly egotistic. Though the film is based on a true story, Capote’s self-involved image is exaggerated, and is at times overwhelming to conceive. For instance, in one scene he states, ‘ Sometimes when I think of how good my book is going to be, I can’t breathe.’ Do all journalists believe that their work will trump others’? Or that their work is genius? From my experience, not in the least.
Yes, it is true that journalists write the facts, what they see and hear, regardless of whether or not the information is defaming. But to go so far as to manipulate people, running circles around them so that they are left stunned and confused, is off the mark. And, are journalists really all that conceited?
To group and stamp them with a list of negatively connoted characteristics is, plainly put, unfair, and these stereotypes given to journalists are untrue. In many cases, journalists want to help tell their subjects stories, not hurt them. A lot of the time journalists care about their subjects, and are not willing to manipulate them in order to write a more biting story.
So, go ahead and watch the movies that incorporate journalist characters, but think twice before believing that all writers or journalists are narcissistic social outcasts who use peoples’ lives to better their own.
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