How-news-becomes-opinion

Hownewsbecomesopinion,andopinionoff-limitsArticlefrom:TheNationArticledate:June24,1996Author:Rushdie,SalmanIwaswonderingwhat,ifany,commongroundmightbeoccupiedbynovelistsandjournalistswhenmyeyefelluponthefollowingbrieftextinaBritishnationaldaily:Inyesterday'sIndependent,westatedthatSirAndrewLloydWebberisfarmingostriches.Heisnot.Onecanonlyguessatthebrouhahaconcealedbeneaththeseadmirablylaconicsentences:thehumandistress,theprotests.Asyouknow,Britainhasbeengoingthroughaperiodofwhatonemightcallheightenedlivestockinsecurityoflate.Aswellasthementallychallengedcattleherds,therehasbeenthealarmingcaseofthegreatostrich-farmingbubble,orswindle.Intheseoverheatedtimes,amanwhoisnotanostrichfarmer,whenaccusedofbeingone,willnottaketheallegationlightly.Hemayevenfeelthathisreputationhasbeenslighted.Plainly,itwasquitewrongoftheIndependenttosuggestthatSirAndrewLloydWebberwasbreedingostriches.Heis,ofcourse,acelebratedexporterofmusicalturkeys.Butifweagreeforamomenttopermitthesupposedlycovertandallegedlyfraudulentfarmingofostrichestostandasametaphorforalltheworld'ssupposedlycovertandallegedlyfraudulentactivities,thenmustwenotalsoagreethatitisvitalthattheseostrichfarmersbeidentified,namedandbroughttoaccountfortheiractivities?Isthisnottheveryheartoftheprojectofafreepress?Andmighttherenotbeoccasionsonwhicheveryeditorwouldbepreparedtogowithsuchastory--leaked,perhaps,byanostrichdeepthroat--onthebasisofless-than-solidevidence,inthenationalinterest?Iamarrivingbydegreeatmypoint,whichisthatthegreatissuefacingwritersbothofjournalismandofnovelsisthatofdetermining,andthenpublishing,thetruth.Fortheultimategoalofbothfactualandfictionalwritingisthetruth,howeverparadoxicalthatmaysound.Andtruthisslippery,hardtoestablish.Mistakes,asintheLloydWebbercase,canbemade.Andiftruthcansetyoufree,itcanalsolandyouinhotwater.Fineasthewordsounds,truthisalltoooftenunpalatable,awkward,unorthodox.Thearmiesofreceivedideasaremarshaledagainstit.Thelegionsofallthosewhostandtoprofitbyusefuluntruthswillmarchagainstit.Yetitmust,ifatallpossible,betold.But,itmaybeobjected,cantherereallybeanyconnectionbetweenthetruthofthenewsandthatoftheworldoftheimagination?Intheworldoffacts,amaniseitheranostrichfarmerorheisnot.Infiction'suniverse,hemaybefifteencontradictorythingsatonce.Letmeattemptananswer.ThewordnovelderivesfromtheLatinwordfornew;inFrench,nouvellesarebothstoriesandnewsreports.Ahundredyearsago,peoplereadnovels,amongotherthings,forinformation.FromDickens'sNicholasNickleby,BritishreadersgotshockinginformationaboutpoorschoolslikeDotheboysHall,andsuchschoolsweresubsequentlyabolished.UncleTomCabin,HuckleberryFinnandMoby-Dickareall,inthisnewsysense,information-heavy.So:Untiltheadventofthetelevisionage,literaturesharedwithprintjournalismthetaskoftellingpeoplethingstheydidn'tknow.Thisisnolongerthecase,eitherforliteratureorforprintjournalism.ThosewhoreadnewspapersandnovelsnowgettheirprimaryinformationabouttheworldfromtheTVnewsandtheradio.Thereareexceptions,ofcourse.Thesuccessofthatexcellent,livelynovelPrimaryColorsshowsthatnovelscanjustoccasionallystillliftthelidonahiddenworldmoreeffectivelythanthefinestreporting.Andofcoursethebroadcastnewsishighlyselective,andnewspapersprovidefargreaterbreadthanddepthofcoverage.Butmanypeoplenowreadnewspapers,Isuggest,toreadthenewsaboutthenews.Wereadforopinion,attitude,spin.Wereadnotforrawdata,notforGradgrind'sfacts,facts,facts,buttogetatakeonthenewsthatwelike.Nowthatthebroadcastingmediafulfillthefunctionofbeingfirstwiththenews,newspapers,likenovels,haveenteredtherealmoftheimagination.Theybothprovideversionsoftheworld.PerhapsthisisclearerinacountrylikeBritain,wherethepressisprimarilyanationalpress,thanintheUnitedStates,wherethegreatproliferationoflocalpapersallowsprintjournalismtoprovidetheadditionalserviceofansweringtolocalconcernsandadoptinglocalcharacteristics.ThesuccessfulqualitypapersinBritain--amongdailies,theGuardian,Times,TelegraphandFinancialTimes--aresuccessfulbecausetheyhaveclearpicturesofwhotheirreadersareandhowtotalktothem.(ThelanguishingIndependentoncedid,butappearslatelytohavelostitsway.)TheyaresuccessfulbecausetheysharewiththeirreadersavisionofBritishsocietyandoftheworld.Thenewshasbecomeamatterofopinion.Andthisputsanewspapereditorinapositionnotatalldissimilarfromthatofanovelist.Itisforthenovelisttocreate,communicateandsustainovertimeapersonalandcoherentvisionoftheworldthatentertains,interests,stimulates,provokesandnourisheshisreaders.Itisforthenewspapereditortodoverymuchthesamethingwiththepagesathisdisposal.Inthatspecializedsense,weareallinthefictionbusinessnow.OneofthemoreextraordinarytruthsaboutthesoapoperathatistheBritishroyalfamilyisthattoalargeextenttheleadingfigureshavehadtheircharactersinventedforthembytheBritishpress.Andsuchisthepowerofthefictionthatthefleshandbloodroyalshavebecomemoreandmoreliketheirprintpersonae,unabletoescapethefictionoftheirimaginarylives.Thecreationofcharactersis,infact,rapidlybecominganessentialpartofprintjournalism'sstockintrade.Neverhavepersonalityprofilesandpeoplecolumns--neverhasgossip--occupiedasm