16 Apr 08 Robert Niles: ‘There is no such thing as “off the record” anymore.’

So says Online Journalism Review editor Robert Niles. Niles says this in the wake of the huge stink made over Barack Obama’s comments at a recent gathering where journalists were not allowed.

Huffington Post writer Mayhill Flower was there, she recorded what Obama said and the rest is very recent history. What’s funny is that the bigger story is what Obama said, which wasn’t that big of a deal, but that he was in a venue that was supposed to be forbidden to journalists.

Why?

He’s a presidential candidate, a potential leader of the free world. Every place he speaks and every word he says is in the public interest. Speaking to an exclusive group of rich fund raisers isn’t the best way to shake that ‘elitist’ stigma, but I digress. We’re talking about journalism here. Says Niles:

With so many people publishing to blogs, Facebook pages and discussion boards, any professional news reporter who agrees to respect an “off the record” request at a meeting is committing an act of unilateral professional disarmament. I say… bag that. Don’t tell organizers that you’re a reporter. You’re a citizen, too. Get in, and report on what you see, just like any other citizen would.

In fact, the Obama incident provides a compelling argument why news reporters ought to contribute to political campaigns, to buy themselves access to more events that they can cover.

I agree. In the blogger/online journalist/grassroots journalism age, nothing is “off the record” for those in the public eye. Politicians, lawmakers and even celebrities need to know, we are the media and we are watching.

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