Why not accredit news sources like we do schools?
We’re seeing much discussion today about how to improve news. Bad international actors now flood our information spaces with falsehoods. Interviewers ask naïve questions of their subjects rather than risk losing access. News organisations have reduced staff to the point that ‘journalism’ increasingly refers to pundits who comment on news rather reporters who seek it out. What can we do to improve things? What follows is one suggestion. Let’s do some curation—and, in the process, shift the reward system. Why not have an international, independent accreditation network for news sources? It would work much as accrediting organisations now do for universities. Information sources would be periodically evaluated by research and journalism professionals using objective standards. These services would then be assigned tiered ratings. AP, for example might earn a designation of Gold Medal News Source at the end of the day; Discovery Channel might be a Bronze Medal source. Sensatio...
