Among the great challenges that journalism faces today is trying to be impervious to the emotional processes in which many societies are immersed, often due to the interests of certain elites. And in resolving this challenge, the health of democracy is also at stake.
In this last decade, certain events have raised great emotional waves such as the pandemic, the victory and defeat of Donald Trump, Brexit, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the genocidal conflict in Palestine and the independence process in Catalonia. All these historical events are analyzed by Josep Carles Rius (Valls, 1956) in Journalism and democracy in the era of emotions (‘Active Journalism’ Collection, Edicions Universitat de Barcelona), a book that is a continuation of his previous work Journalism under reconstruction (2017).
“The impact of emotions has always been very strong,” says the author, who addresses in the book how these feelings are manipulated to achieve different objectives by certain elites, often helped by social networks. “From Putin’s extreme use of Russian nationalism and nostalgia for the Soviet past and the tsars, to the case of Trump who, having practically the entire press against him, used America’s feeling of frustration with globalization deep and white to win,” he cites as examples.
A panorama, the one described by Rius, that makes the journalist’s work more difficult. Why, after creating these emotional waves, how can the journalist isolate himself? How does he remain firm in his duty to approach the truth above his own feelings and ideology?
The former dean of the Col·legi de Periodistes de Catalunya and who is currently president of the Consell de la Informació de Catalunya, points out that “journalism and democracy are two sides of the same coin; and truthful and impartial information, the best safeguard of freedom and justice.”
He warns that in a democratic environment abuses by certain elites can also occur. That is why it is important to remember that “without democracy there is no journalism and without journalism there is no democracy.” Journalism is linked to democracy and has to be committed, he adds. “Because democracy is fragile as seen with Trump’s victory in the United States.”
A chapter of the book is dedicated to the independence process in Catalonia. “The case of emotional impact that I know best,” says Rius. The book puts the process in context, “a phenomenon that occurs in Catalonia but in an international context” related to situations “such as the great crisis of 2008 or the tensions linked to globalization.” Rius points out that many books have been written about the process, but none about journalism about the process. “And for me, that was a certain duty.”
In the book he lists up to eight emotional waves “that led to practically half of the population of Catalonia supporting independence.” And later, already within the process, Rius carries out “a critical analysis of the role played by the media”, where the so-called “trench journalism” was very present.
In the book, which will be presented next Tuesday at the Alibri bookstore in Barcelona, the author also analyzes the media ecosystem in Spain, the power of platforms such as Google or Twitter and the great future challenges such as artificial intelligence. And under the title ‘Trumpism with the press in favor’, there is also a chapter dedicated to the Ayuso phenomenon and how that affects journalism.
Journalism and democracy in the era of emotions is “a very necessary book, full of authoritative voices and very timely, because the consequences of the three great communication phenomena that are studied are still alive: Trump, Brexit and processes. It is also a book that will bother some. It’s good if that’s the way it is,” he concludes in the epilogue J.J. Caballero Gil, journalist and partner of Rius in La Vanguardia for almost 25 years.