That's why it is no surprise that nowadays journalists rate about as low in the public's opinion as politicians. Yet my worry isn't so much about my profession's reputation, but the general decline in standards of honesty in society that these incidents represent. The prospect that people like the president or columnist Barnicle will succeed in getting away with their lies without paying a serious price doesn't bother me so much as the idea that the importance of telling the truth is being devalued. Too many people seem to think that their good intentions and important work ought to give them a free pass when it comes to telling the truth. And when caught, they act as if it is priggishness or bad taste on the part of their critics to force them to account for their misdeeds.
Jewish newspapers are in a particularly tough position.
Like everyone else in the media, we are expected to give our readers an honest and thorough account of the news as well as putting it in perspective via commentary and opinion. Yet, Jewish papers are subject to pressures that are different from those that other journalists face. Jewish newspapers are asked to not merely report the Jewish news but often to promote Jewish organizations and causes. Even more to the point, we are sometimes asked to protect them as well from the consequences of their own folly. That's because of our special position in our community which we want desperately to nurture.