Last April, I found myself sitting in a group study room in the library waiting for a phone call. About two months prior, I applied for a dream summer internship with a news station near my hometown, and I was about to find out whether I got the job. I worked hard building up my resume during my first few years of college and equally as hard preparing for the interview. Needless to say, I was nervous. Finally, the phone rang, and to my delight, they hired me.
In the weeks leading up to the internship, I had an idea of the kind of reporter I wanted to be. I noticed the headlines of FOX News and CNN, and I knew that I did not want to push anyone to think a certain way. It seemed like biased news was dividing people, so I did not want to contribute to that. However, as a Christian journalist, having this mindset led to some internal conflicts. If I wanted to be unbiased in my reporting, did that mean I had to throw away my Christian beliefs from nine to five every day? As I dove headfirst into publishing my stories, I struggled with this question, and throughout the summer, I realized the answer to it was complicated.
For starters, most journalists agree that news that is passed along as fact should never have bias toward a political party, religion or ideology. Instead, a reporter’s job is to gather the facts, compile them into a story that is easy to follow and let the audience interpret what those facts mean. So, if journalists are not supposed to gear their stories toward religion, does that mean that Christian reporters cannot honor and glorify God? Not necessarily.
To me, a reporter’s ability to honor and glorify God with their work depends on their motivation and reasoning for being a journalist. If someone wants a case study on what not to do, then they should look at how I approached my internship last summer. For the most part, I stayed unbiased, but I was selfish. My incentive for producing a quality story was because my name was attached to it, so if it was less than satisfactory, it would make me look bad. Utilizing this mentality is not always a bad thing, but if a reporter lets it consume them to the point where they are reporting to please the world, they will experience a constant feeling of emptiness.
Unfortunately, it took me a while to figure that out. It was not until I returned to the station over winter break when I finally understood how I can be a Christian, unbiased reporter. Instead of focusing on myself, I prioritized the impressive people I interviewed. I started to appreciate their love and passion for what they do, and my newfound motivation to put together a great story was because my interviewees deserved to have their stories told. In this way, I honored and glorified God by reporting with a servant heart, which he calls us to do in Galatians 5:13 when Paul writes, “The freedom we receive through Christ is not for selfish indulgence, but for serving others with humility and love.” Choosing to report with humility led to a satisfaction and fulfillment I had never felt before as a broadcaster or reporter. I stopped chasing the approval of people.Instead, I worked to find the never-ending love of God. Therefore, I realized that to be a Christian, unbiased reporter I must be truthful and selfless.
