The prognosis is good!

I have the journalist’s disease*, but thankfully it’s in remission and, God willing, I’ll make a full recovery.

The problem with long term journalism is that unless you are an exceptionally balanced person (hah!) you end up sort of existing outside your own life. You see, to practice journalism you have to be able to cultivate the ability to see how situations can be viewed from perspectives other than your own. It is a thing known as objectivity.

Of course, it’s largely a sham in real life, but it does exist as a shining ideal for young journalists when they set out on their professional careers. It’s the idea that in journalism, you should report the facts as they really are, rather than how they are viewed by the various different parties to the story.

The problem with this is that in reality, the journalist is usually no more equipped than anyone else to know what the facts are, so we as media consumers get something else that passes for objectivity – we get balance.

Balance involves the journalist presenting opinions from both sides of a story rather than trying to actually discover the underlying truths of the situation. Usually this will satisfy all parties because everybody has their say and if it’s done right and you don’t say anything that can’t be proved, nobody gets sued.

Of course, this isn’t actual objectivity, it’s merely balance – because the opinions expressed by the opposing sides of whatever debate, issue or disagreement is in question are no more likely to know the absolute truth than anyone else. In real life, there is no right or wrong, merely perspective. When everyone agrees with you, you’re right, when everyone doesn’t, you’re wrong.

Anyway, we were talking about objectivity. Being able to see the world from other people’s perspective is actually not as easy as it sounds. It takes a bit of effort, but the good news is that if you take the time to do it, you actually personally benefit. It’s easier to move through life if you can clearly understand why other people do things.

The problem arises though when journalists as people lose their own perspective. At the same time that you are cultivating the skill outlined above, you are also having your own sense of objectivity warped, because life treats journalists slightly different to other people.

Depending on what end of the media you work in, you end up being flown to exotic places (you probably couldn’t afford to go to), invited to boozy lunches in Michelin starred restaurants (you definitely couldn’t afford to eat in), and meet powerful/exciting/attractive - delete as applicable- celebrities (you wouldn’t otherwise meet).

The reason all these honours are bestowed upon you is because journalists are opinion-formers and we live in a world where commercial interests are attempting to influence your opinions all the time. An influenced opinion means a larger bottom line for the companies in question.

Most journalists enjoy a certain degree of personal power in terms of what agendas they bring to their writing, who they choose to cover in their work and in what way. This is a little simplistic, because there are also limiting factors at work, such as editors and the like, but it will suffice.

So does all this sound good? Well, it is. It’s great! It’s fantastic, but the problem arises when you start to take this kind of lifestyle for granted and real life starts to become a little . . . well . . . bland. Real actual life can end up being less interesting than work. People will credit you with some sort of higher insight into the hidden workings of the universe and your opinion will be sought after and usually respected. It's all nonsense, of course, but a lot of people end up falling for it. Those who don't get cynical about it, and those who do usually end up cynical about it too.

In your personal life this can cause problems, because you can end up observing life rather than living it, and I have felt this happening to me a few times over the years. You become so caught up in playing a role, than you lose sight of the fact that its just a role – your job is something you do, not something you are.

It’s perfectly possible to be an excellent journalist with a great sense of the importance of objectivity and an excellent home life and not have any of the above happen to you at all. But it’s also possible to really mess yourself up, and over the years I’ve met some seriously dysfunctional alcoholics.

More than ever, I'm convinced that it's crucial never to lose your sense of wonder at the world. You should avoid things that chip away at that. At least, that's what I think.

*(Actually, there are two journalist’s diseases and I have both. Or all three, if you count the third one. But really there are only two, and most people wouldn’t consider poor spelling an actual disease, merely a professional impediment. The second journalist’s disease is that I dislike writing without knowing in advance who is actually paying me to do it, but maybe that should be the topic of another blog some times. Suffice to say that every day in every way, I get a little bit better. )