Good Night and Good Luck: A Benediction for Journalists

Good Night and Good Luck (dir. George Clooney, 2005) will be a lighthouse to meandering generations of journalists to come – at least, after watching it, one would hope so.

The film is a cinematic well from which those of the fourth estate may draw wisdom, guidance, and inspiration. It showcases both ends of the journalistic spectrum: those yellow news people motivated by financial and popularity factors, and those morally sound gems dedicated to none but the audience. Good Night dares modern news institutions to follow the example of the ethical reporter.

There is a very thorough book by Misters Kovach and Rosenstiel called The Elements of Journalism, which addresses what ought to be (but rarely are) the building blocks of a noble trade. These elements are played out in Good Night as if the book and film were scripted by the same party.

Like the authors, Edward Murrow, hero of Good Night, recognized that “television in the main is being used to distract, delude, amuse, and insulate us,” citing Americans’ “built-in allergy to unpleasant or disturbing information” as a cause for journalism’s plunge into some form of mass “reality” entertainment.

Clooney and the authors would agree on the roles of transparency and bias in the newsroom. Kovach and Rosenstiel wrote about honesty regarding not only what is known, but also what is unknown. “Acknowledging what is not known is a claim to more authority, not less,” they said.

Good Night tells the story of broadcast journalists wrestling with the controversies surrounding Joseph McCarthy, a scenario fraught with unknowns. The station’s honest treatment of the issue inspired the nation to trust Edward Murrow more than any other American.

Other members of the CBS team would make skyscrapers out of sandcastles just to get something on the air. Co-producer Fred Friendly said, “There’s no news, boys, so go out there and make some news.” But Murrow didn’t want to abuse the privilege of being on TV by broadcasting drivel.

Kovach and Rosensteil argue that “bias is not something that can or should be eliminated,” and this is clear from the newscasts shown in Good Night. Murrow’s opinion was obvious every time he stepped in front of the camera, a technique that would be quarantined today as a breach of people’s freedom to believe what they choose. In fact, it ultimately cost Murrow his job.

But Murrow never told audiences “this is what you should believe.” In spite of his bias, he presented a balanced account of the facts, presenting evidence from outside sources alongside his interpretation so that viewers could make informed choices.

That is responsible journalism. Kovach and Rosenstiel wrote that “objective” reporting “is more than mere accuracy.” It’s not facts presented without meaning; there is a “sorting-out process” on the part of the journalist. “Mere accuracy can be a kind of distortion,” they said.

The purpose of journalism is to reveal, not to hide. Murrow believed TV had the potential to teach, illuminate, and inspire if used toward those ends. “Otherwise,” he said, “it is merely wires and lights in a box.”