The assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia earlier this week focused the international press on the state of Malta’s legal system. But shortly after reports of her death made headlines, a second story emerged.
News organizations were divided in how to refer to Mrs. Galizia. Some agencies like Reuters called her an “anti-corruption blogger” while others like the Guardian referred to her simply as a “journalist.” Ambiguity in the label given to Mrs. Galizia angered both her champions and critics. Fans insisted she be referred to as a “journalist” even though her most impactful work came from her opinionated blog Running Commentary.
Is there a difference between journalists and bloggers? Should these distinctions mean anything to readers? Coverage of Daphne’s assassination highlights the difficulty in defining what journalists and bloggers are in today’s media landscape and how technology has blurred traditional journalistic boundaries.
JOURNALISTS VS. BLOGGERS
Although difficult to define, distinctions can be drawn between journalists and bloggers. Journalists traditionally are employees of a newspaper that operate in a physical office managed by a hierarchy of writers, researchers, and editors. In this model, published work is borne of the collaboration among colleagues who all contribute prior to publishing.
In blogging, work is produced in more independent and informal atmosphere. Thanks to the laptop computer and the Internet, bloggers can write, edit and publish content from anywhere. Approval from editors and adherence to company policies is non-existent unless the blogger imposes these himself. Less overhead can mean less collaboration and fewer filters on the final work.
Another important distinction is how highly regarded facts or opinions are to the producer. For journalists, facts are essential and opinions dangerous. Journalists tend to value facts because their reputation depends on the trust of readers who purchase their newspaper. If a journalist lies or does not corroborate sources, he risks misleading readers and damaging credibility.
Bloggers on the other hand, tend to value opinion over fact. They produce pieces meant to appeal to the emotions of readers so as to produce visitors and Internet traffic. Bloggers love traffic because they earn money from advertisers who buy spaces on blog sites that target readers. Head-turning, opinionated and controversial work is essential for the survival of any blog. And like the fact-based credibility of a newspaper, the success of a blog depends on the blogger’s image and opinions.
DAPHNE: JOURNALIST OR BLOGGER?
Daphne Caruana Galizia started her career at The Times of Malta in 1987 in the newsroom before moving to The Malta Independent in 1992 where she rose to the office of editor. In these roles she reported on current affairs and built a reputation as a fact-based journalist.
But Mrs. Galizia was best known for her blog called Running Commentary, which became an unfiltered soundboard for terse, visceral attacks on politicians, judges, and other elites. Since Commentary was established in 2008, it often reached 400,000 daily views and an estimated 330 million total views.
This attention also produced enemies. In total, 42 libel suits were brought against Mrs. Galizia. She became most famous for her attack on Prime Minister Joseph Muscat’s wife who she accused of establishing a shell company to hide assets overseas. The accusations sunk Muscat’s approval rating and forced him to call a snap election.
JOURNALIST WITH A BLOG
Mrs. Galizia’s blog was both loathed and praised because she used facts to support her opinions. Much of her posts online were based upon leaks from the Panama Papers Consortium of Journalists. These leaks linked hundreds of prominent individuals of many nationalities to shell companies intended to hide wealth.
Although most of the individuals she leveled accusations against walk free, she exposed their corruption with facts they have been unable to refute. In other words, she used fact-based reporting to support self-produced opinion pieces published on her blog.
In this context it makes sense to refer to Daphne as a journalist who often expressed her personal views in blog format. This hybrid model of journalism and blogging made Running Commentary hugely successful and points to a new kind of journalism that places equal value on fact and opinion.
Daphne’s case is the perfect example of how traditional distinctions between bloggers and journalists are blurring to create a powerful form of journalism. Sadly her work was powerful enough to also attract actors bent on silencing her.