Games Journalism Must Stop Reporting Rumours

Holygrenade expresses concern how games journalism relies on rumour and reports it as news.

[mochachino]

Remember when game journalism was restricted to magazines and at the end of them they had a small Rumors section...now the headline of every site is made from a rumor.

[guitarded77]

It's not just the gaming media, the gaming media is a reflection of media in general. There is no integrity left because of "news" agencies like FOX... even once respected news agencies like CBS and the BBC use such tactics regularly.

When I say a site is crap, it is because they have no founded proof or source for their "rumor". I see the people who work for these sites and know that the vast majority of them have no understanding of what it is to be a journalist. I think taking a history of media class in college really helps people to distinguish between what is good reporting and what is crap. I just wish more gamers were aware, then certain big sites (will not name) wouldn't make a dime off the trash they put out.

Sorry for the soapbox stuff... I may have had a bit too much drinky, drinky.

[mochachino]

I agree, no need to apologize, drink up!

-Cheers

[GamerEuphoria]

Not every site ;)

[Emilio_Estevez]

I couldn't even count the times I've told more casual players "No that's definitively not true", after they said I read it on the internets. All the damn time.

[MaideninBlack]

This article fails because it assumes there are actual video game journalists on the internet.

[vortis]

Well there is Forbes, and maybe VentureBeat. Electro Theatre and sometimes Ripten. But you're read, the interwebs is not full of real journalists.

[jeeves86]

When your site depends on ad revenue, sometimes it's better to report rumours and then clarify afterwards. However, when all you do is report rumours, you tend to discredit your site. At least when I report rumours, I put it right in the headline that it's a rumour and offer a personal speculation, not pass off rumour as fact.