There is a cost to doing anything, and when the cost exceeds the limit that the institution can bear, it becomes virtually impossible to accomplish. CBS "60 Minutes" could have enough resources to obtain Jeffrey's testimony, support him to bypass the Kentucky ban, and hire a security company to provide security for him, which is impossible for a single reporter to do. However, when the news broadcast may be retaliated by the tobacco giant, CBS cannot support such a high cost, the video was refrigerated for a time, and Luo Wei, who insisted that the news value was higher than the safety of the company, was also exiled.
"Are you a newsman or a businessman?" Newsman pursues truth, businessman pursues profit, and the two cannot always be unified. The stronger the institution, the more likely it is to provide space for press freedom and not do pornography. Under the protection of CBS, journalists can let go of their hands and feet to do news, but there is no end to the nest, and some people have to become businessmen to maintain the existence of media organizations. In fact, there is nothing wrong with being a businessman. Organizations can do things that individuals can’t do, and can provide protection when individuals can’t support them. Some people have to temporarily let go of their pride and make roofs and walls. However, organizations have institutional constraints. The gatekeeper is always there. As a result, more and more media people integrate their resources and choose to go it alone, with less protection and more freedom, and use asymmetric advantages to fight against regulation. Television stations and newspapers are both institutions, and the Internet has given independent journalists more channels of communication.
Whether staying in an institution or choosing to go it alone, it is always good to seek the truth.
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