Strong Objectivity in Journalist Practice:

This paper introduces the arguments about the production of meanings in journalism. The concepts of Objectivity and Neutrality vs. Strong Objectivity in the practice of journalism are explained through the constructivist approach to reflect on how the representation of truth is manifested in the media. The cultural regulations of identities and meanings, together with social location within the power relations in the given society are two most important elements of this paper’s argument of how media should be evaluated on being biased. The focus of the study is media and conflict – more specifically, representations of Fatah-Hamas internal Palestinian conflict in summer 2007, by Palestinian journalists of Aljazeera. The research shows how the media production of knowledge is not a straightforward process, but is determined by the power relations that are grounded in the discourse of the subject. Knowledge is not abstract but debatable and determined by power/knowledge relationship, rather than absolute truth in representations. The ability of maximizing objectivity in journalism by presenting different perspectives and counter arguments, with a priority of the marginalized perspectives, is the methodology taken in this paper that stems out of the framework of Standpoint Epistemology. The truth as a concept is claimed to be the goal of the media, but whether the practice of journalism can provide of reliable knowledge about the conflict is what the paper tries to uncover.