Still with journalistic objectivity: toward overcoming a paradigm fractured

Abstract

Since the end of the nineteenth century, the theory of objectivity has been creating what it would be the prevailing paradigm both in journalistic practice and in the scholarly reflection upon it. However, during the last decades of the twentieth century, an increasing number of communication scholars and practitioners began to contest the main notions embedded in this paradigm, which was put in crisis. Since then, no other concept has stimulated as much controversy as the concept of objectivity, which still gives origin to debates not only endless, but also inconclusive. This article addresses the topic from an often neglected perspective, namely, that of the philosophical underpinnings of the theory of objectivity and its bearing upon the positivist presumptions, dated back to the empiricist tradition. By putting those foundations into scrutiny, it is argued that the theory of objectivity stems from an ill-conceived question. This accounts why this is a fractured paradigm, which, nonetheless, still remains firmly entrenched in our minds. Lastly, some hints are suggested as to how to overcome and replace it.