As a journalist for some 40 plus years, I am appalled by the lack of balance that has been demonstrated by erstwhile colleagues in both the UK and Australia over Cardinal Pell. But then, as Mark Bailey observes, he has a double disadvantage; not only is he a senior Catholic cleric, but he’s a traditionalist as well. Clearly, in the eyes of many supposed ‘journalists’ that means he is already guilty, before any evidence is adduced. And what ‘evidence’ was produced failed to meet even the most cursory of checks for veracity or probability. “Guilty as charged”!
The answer is always ‘No’ to any question in a headline….correctly in this case.
The Australian media has some serious questions of its own to answer, but it won’t.
As a journalist for some 40 plus years, I am appalled by the lack of balance that has been demonstrated by erstwhile colleagues in both the UK and Australia over Cardinal Pell. But then, as Mark Bailey observes, he has a double disadvantage; not only is he a senior Catholic cleric, but he’s a traditionalist as well. Clearly, in the eyes of many supposed ‘journalists’ that means he is already guilty, before any evidence is adduced. And what ‘evidence’ was produced failed to meet even the most cursory of checks for veracity or probability. “Guilty as charged”!