Last update - 00:00 20/03/2007
No humanism in journalism
"The Journalist Who Crossed the Line" is not a new suspense book by Ram Oren or Yair Lapid, but a new book tying together journalism and literature. The book consists of 23 stories written by journalists, which deal with their work. The book was initiated and edited by Talma Admon, who was the editor of Maariv's literature supplement for 10 years and later moved on to edit at Modan Publishing for a year. While working at the publishing house, she got the idea to turn to a group of journalists and ask them each to submit a story they had written.
In a way, the collection of stories provides a behind-the-scenes look at the Israeli press. Some of the stories take place in the halls of the editorial offices, and some occur outside of them. The book includes stories by Yaron Fried about a former columnist, a story by Einat Keidar about a letter "H" that slipped the mind of a proofreader, and other stories by Raanan Shaked, Amir Ben-David, Gideon Levy, Noa Yedlin, Uri Misgav, Shai Golden, Yigal Serena, Benny Ziffer, Miri Hanoch, Zvi Gilat, Nelli Sheffer and others. "I sat among them," says Admon, "and I got to know many journalists around me who had other kinds of texts. Many of them don't even write for a newspaper, but work as proofreaders or editors. But I was certain they were able to create something in a different way, that they have something to say about their work environment."
What emerges from the stories? "That working at a newspaper is not particularly pleasant," replies Admon. "In many cases, it even causes suffering to those who work there. Humanism is the last thing taken into consideration, both in the journalistic text as well as in the halls where it is produced.
"Those who work in these places suffer on a personal level as a result of what they do and because of the rules of the game which they must abide to. Each one of the writers included in the book took this fact to a different direction. Many of the stories represent 'the little man,' the average journalist. But even when the protagonists are senior editors, they suffer from their impulses, and others suffer from them, too. The press factory functions like any other factory, only that it has more ability for self-reflection and reflection on its surroundings. This is why the suffering is even greater."
The Israeli journalism world as it is portrayed in the book is characterized by cynicism, of which even the younger generation of journalists is aware. "I used to think that the young generation enjoy the profession more and feel more at home," says Admon. "But that's not true, everyone suffers from the profession.
"In the age of the Internet and Web blogs, there is a sense that print journalism may be a profession whose time has passed. There is no doubt that printed media is something archaic. Furthermore, words are not as important these days. Photos play a much more important role - in the printed press as well. Those people who express themselves well with words are not as desirable today as they were in the past."
Admon continues: "There is both a future and a present for online journalism, but it's much less controlled and demanding in terms of its messages and values. The internet is something anarchic. The journalism we used to know - something regulated and reliable, with rules and order, values and morals - has been lost. It's a long process that began 15 years ago and has accelerated during the last five years."
Admon herself has published several books: "Noa Doesn't Live Here Anymore" - a collection of essays from 1985; "A shack blows in the wind" - a children's book from 1989; "Lakes" - a collection of stories published in 2005; and "Letters to Amos," a novel released in 2006. Today she spends her time writing and translating.
In your opinion, does journalistic writing contribute to the development of literary writing, or the contrary?
"It depends on how much you commit yourself to journalistic writing. If you devote yourself to it fully, and it robs you of your time - in both the literal meaning as well as with reference to the time in your heart and mind - then you're distancing yourself from literary writing. Journalistic writing can harm literary writing, there is proof of that. So, whoever wants to write books should not devote their soul to journalistic writing. That way, maybe, they can protect themselves from it."