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decisions. Thus the role of a journalist is seen as a watchdog'; part of a system of checks and balances which insures transparency and accountability in politics and business. In this capacity journalism is often described as part of the Fourth Estate. Thomas Carlyle emphasizes the importance of the Fourth Estate in On Heroes and Hero Worship: "In the Reporters' Gallery yonder, there sat a Fourth Estate more important far than they all... Printing, which comes necessarily out of Writing, I say often, is equivalent to Democracy: invent Writing, Democracy is inevitable [sic]."

While the notion of a Fouth Estate - as removed from the king, the clergy and the commons - is now outdated, the role of the watchdog media or free press' is still considered vital to western democracies. American Journalist and Public commentator Bill Moyers puts this view more bluntly: society needs to know what could kill us, whether it's too many lies or too much pollution.'

The practice of journalism is not limited to politics and civic affairs, journalists also allows a society to freely define its culture. This is recognized through arts, entertainment, sports and human interest journalism. The public's thirst for knowledge goes beyond politics and it is the role of the journalist to cover whatever their readers, viewers or listeners want to know about. Journalists can specialize in technology, financial, celebrity or environmental journalism; yet the basic principals of journalistic integrity still apply.

No matter what the context, a journalist should aim for truth and objectivity. In this capacity a journalist becomes someone who keeps us, society, objectively informed so that we may make any number of reasoned decisions; whether it be which football team to support, which movie to see, which shares to buy or which political party to support.

With the advent of the internet, a new public forum for the exchange of information, the role of the journalist has become more important than ever. No other time in human history has it been as easy for just about anyone to create content that can be exposed to an online audience of millions; the only requirement is an internet connection. Yet the internet as a medium has no standards of integrity for the information disseminated through it.

Truth and objectivity cannot be regulated on such a vast, international and anonymous plane. Internet sites and emailed messages can assert rumor and speculation as fact. In the United States Handbook of Independent Journalism Deborah Potter declares that, "in a complex world where information is no longer a scarce commodity, the role of the journalist has become more important than ever" (Potter 2006, Section I).

A journalist is a communicator bound by truth and objectivity. They have must select, research and package this information for their public. Journalists are the sensory organs of society. The most important function that a journalist can perform is as a member of a Fourth Estate which watches and exposes corruption, lies and mistruths in civic society.

Yet their role is not limited to civic responsibilities, they seek out and report literally whatever it is that society demands of them. In an age of speedy mass communication where information can be distributed without accountability or integrity, the journalist's role is as important as ever. We need information we can trust and base decisions on, from the mundane to the significant, and we trust journalists to deliver.

Learn more about this author, Ben Winsor.
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