Masterclasses – The basics

Journalism is a profession and probably a little bit more. The German term ‘Beruf’, tinted with the idea of vocation, i.e. a calling, would be more accurate. Like any learned profession (doctor, lawyer, psychologist, etc.), journalism is governed by a professional code and by ethics, failing such it would lose its meaning, based on relational trust. It also has a long and complex history, full of tensions, heroes and martyrs committed to the freedom to inform and the right to be informed. Journalism is a practice built on a heritage, an experience, a relationship with sources. A craft with its masters and apprentices, its values that seem to belong to another era (the search for truth, honesty, courage) but also state-of-the-art communication tools and a constantly current look at society to which it holds up a mirror and a reflection that is as faithful as possible. With the risk that this society, irritated by its reflection, might want to break the mirror or turn away from it.