The South African Department of Health recently released a statement that they might be implementing legislation to decrease the amount of trans-fats in the average South African’s diet. Despite the shiny newness of the report, online media institutions have already jumped on the story.
The general reaction is that trans-fats are the devil; deep-fried, dripping with menacing grease, ready to clog our arteries. Most articles paint a pretty one-sided picture. Yes, they say, all of the facts align neatly… Yes, the government would be doing the right thing by implementing the policy… Yes, yes, that’s right…
Of the articles I’ve scanned I’m most impressed by Health24. It seems to be the only article where reporters actually stopped to question the matter, to get opinions and quotes. Some healthy scepticism is introduced as they consider obstacles in the implementation process and expand on the facts. It’s called balance. Journalists should really try it these days.
What really gets my goat, though, is the content of the article written by The Associated Press. Despite the brevity of the article, they still manage to bring HIV/AIDS into the matter, sneakily slipping it in there that we have “the highest total [of infection] of any country”. How off-putting and unnecessary. These, my fellow consumers, are the “trans-fats” of journalism; the unhealthy bits that we need to cut out. It’s a style of journalism with mass-produced stereotypes and worn statements reminiscent of fast-food. It’s cheap, it’s fast, and there’s something distinctly oily about it.
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