[LINK] Balance the enemy of facts (was Re: Jobs not all bad)

[Richard Chirgwin]

On 21/10/11 2:04 PM, Fernando Cassia wrote:
> On Thu, Oct 20, 2011 at 20:27, Richard Chirgwin
> <rchirgwin at ozemail.com.au>  wrote:
>> I can't say too much about the business secrets of The Register, but a
>> story about the Higgs Boson experiments at CERN went well into
>> six-figures for hits in about two days. No fake controversy required.
> Dear Colleague,
>
> I wasn´t supporting "fake controversy", but controversy exists most of
> the time, and adding it to a news report just adds spice to the news
> story.
>
> When did El Reg exit the IT Tabloid business and became a scientific
> journal?. ;-P
I didn't call it a scientific "journal" ... I'd be horrified! :-)

However, I do enjoy the latitude of being allowed to write a few science 
stories a week, because (a) the readers love them to death, and (b) it's 
fun. In amongst all normal life of an IT tabloid. OK, I will confess to 
the occasional tabloid headline, but readers forgive it if the science 
is good.

I didn't think you were advocating fake controversy; however, I don't 
feel I have to add it merely to adhere to a journalistic convention, if 
I can make a story interesting without it.

Cheers,
RC
>
> Mike Magee would be horrified.
>
> FC