All The President's Men

Bob Woodward and Carl Berstein are the epitome of everything for which journalism stands. Their bust on the Watergate scandal is a perfect example of journalism as a "watchdog," keeping those in power accountable and making the truth known to the public that they would not be able to get any other way. They also show how important the discipline of verification is, as they have to get many sources to make their story solid, especially since their main source of information was anonymous. Another quality they possess is persistence. This story took two years to completely uncover, but they didn't give up because they knew its importance and knew they owed that story to the citizens.

A Minute Before Friday

The main character Jonna in Jo Kadlecek's novel A Minute Before Friday exemplifies some good and bad habits of journalism. It is clear that she has an obligation to the truth and a loyalty to the citizens. She persists with the story and doesn't give up, despite some dead ends. She gets multiple, reliable sources for a well-balanced, unbiased story. She is always prepared and professional in her reporting, and has a natural curiosity to the discover the truth and become a voice for the voiceless. She does run into conflict, however, when she lets her personal life and feelings for David interfere with the story. That's a big no-no for journalism, and while journalists are human, they have to put those human emotions behind them as they write their story.