Dan "We the Media" Gillmor has a fascinating editorial up today, "Helping the Almost-Journalists Do Journalism" about the "journalistic" work that organizations like the ACLU are doing in covering stories like the detainees at Guantanamo Bay, and how they're filling a gap left by the traditional press, whose reportage has trailed ACLU's work. He proposes that these organizations can be turned into actual journalistic orgs with the addition of a little bit of journo practice.
They're falling short today in several areas, notably the one that comes hardest to advocates: fairness. This is a broad and somewhat fuzzy word. But it means, in general, that you a) listen hard to people who disagree with you; b) hunt for facts and data that are contrary to your own stand; and c) reflect disagreements and nuances in what you tell the rest of us.
Advocacy journalism has a long and honorable history. But the best in this arena have always acknowledged the disagreements and nuances, and they've been fair in reflecting opposing or orthogonal views and ideas.
By doing so, they can strengthen their own arguments in the end. At the very least they are clearer, if not absolutely clear, on the other sides' arguments, however weak. (That's sides, not side; there are almost never only two sides to anything.)
Of course, transparency is essential in this process, and for the most part we get it from advocacy groups. The one we can't trust are the ones who take positions that echo the views of financial patrons. The think-tank business is known for this kind of thing, and it's an abysmal practice.
