All The President's Men
1. Woodward and Bernstein served as watchdogs of government officials. What are some of the challenges they confronted as reporters unraveling the Watergate story?
Being a journalist and reporting about government activities that question their intellect is very challenging. Woodward and Bernstein have to be aware that they are dealing with higher authorities that have power. They have the power to conduct surveillance on people who need to be monitored, thus witnesses are afraid to talk because their lives are in danger. Woodward and Bernstein may put the witnesses’ life and even their own lives in danger if they are seen interviewing the people being monitored. Also, it is also hard to gather information if it is hard to interview these witnesses.
2. What personality traits made them good watchdogs of the government?
Woodward is a very firm and aggressive person. He is not afraid to ask many questions and he is sly. Both Woodward and Bernstein are smart and wise because they are able to tie clues together, which led them to what they needed to find. Their clues are often revealed through ‘anonymous’ sources, thus shows the reliance of the two reporters. They are seem too trusting even though they don’t have pure concrete evidence on the alleged claims of the sources- this is a trait their boss Bradlee seems to dislike. Also, they both show passion in what they do, which is evident through their persistent quest in searching for information.
3. How would you characterize Woodward and Bernstein's reporting process? In what way did their actions exemplify ethical standards?
Woodward and Bernstein’s reporting process more often than not starts with a lead, a phone call informing them about the story. Then Woodward and Bernstein investigate any clues they draw from the lead. They use their analytical skills to draw more clues and more information. If it is necessary, they will go interview people. This means all information published and
Being a journalist and reporting about government activities that question their intellect is very challenging. Woodward and Bernstein have to be aware that they are dealing with higher authorities that have power. They have the power to conduct surveillance on people who need to be monitored, thus witnesses are afraid to talk because their lives are in danger. Woodward and Bernstein may put the witnesses’ life and even their own lives in danger if they are seen interviewing the people being monitored. Also, it is also hard to gather information if it is hard to interview these witnesses.
2. What personality traits made them good watchdogs of the government?
Woodward is a very firm and aggressive person. He is not afraid to ask many questions and he is sly. Both Woodward and Bernstein are smart and wise because they are able to tie clues together, which led them to what they needed to find. Their clues are often revealed through ‘anonymous’ sources, thus shows the reliance of the two reporters. They are seem too trusting even though they don’t have pure concrete evidence on the alleged claims of the sources- this is a trait their boss Bradlee seems to dislike. Also, they both show passion in what they do, which is evident through their persistent quest in searching for information.
3. How would you characterize Woodward and Bernstein's reporting process? In what way did their actions exemplify ethical standards?
Woodward and Bernstein’s reporting process more often than not starts with a lead, a phone call informing them about the story. Then Woodward and Bernstein investigate any clues they draw from the lead. They use their analytical skills to draw more clues and more information. If it is necessary, they will go interview people. This means all information published and