The second in a series of sessions sponsored by the Committee of Concerned Journalists examining the core principles journalists share was held at Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism on December 4, 1997 in New York, and focused on the question of impartiality in an age when journalism sees its role as increasingly to offer interpretation.

None of the forums is intended as definitive, but rather form a kind of coordinated reporting effort which will be the basis for other research, follow-up interviews, survey work, some content analysis, a video series and ultimately a monograph. The Committee is underwritten with a grant from the Pew Charitable Trusts.

At the first forum in Chicago we heard journalists from many quarters identify a set of shared core values--a commitment to citizens above all, to accuracy, to balance, to fairness, to an open- minded approach to reporting. This New York forum, in effect, attempted to define those terms more carefully and see where the press may not be living up to them.

We heard, first, that while objectivity may not be a philosophical possibility, a sense of disinterestedness about who wins and loses in public events must remain a practical goal for journalism--perhaps even more so today as journalism is becoming more interpretive.

This disinterestedness goes deeper than fairness or freedom from partisanship--the classic definitions of press neutrality. It also touches on motive: the goal is to inform rather than manipulate; to be of value to the whole community rather than a faction or constituency. And it rests on the idea that-- in a human if not absolute sense--there is what columnist Maggie Gallagher called "some such thing as truth."

"Our fine ideal," said Bill Keller , the managing editor of the New York Times, is "to present the reader with enough information to make up his or her own mind."

Unfortunately, the press much more often than it recognizes falls short of its goal, we heard. Inadequate monitoring systems, cynicism, intellectual laziness, a bias toward institutional and establishment sources, an inbred and insular journalistic culture all undermine the pursuit.

The solution, most speakers felt, lies in opening up the journalistic culture, by listening dramatically more to our audiences, by looking in new ways and places for the next generation of journalists, and by allowing much more open discourse in newsrooms. Time may be limited, however, for relationships such as that of Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and the New York press suggest that, as the public sees the press increasingly as another establishment player rather than as a public surrogate, it is increasingly tolerant of public officials withholding information and engaging in unfiltered propaganda.

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