The infamous Watergate Scandal was one of the turning points of American Political History. It was a major fraud that lasted from 1972 to 1974. It was robbery committed by the then American President Richard Nixon’s administration. It included five burglars from Democratic National Committee (DNC) which had its headquarters at Watergate. However, the scandal had an equally deeper effect on Journalism around the world. The scandal came to public attention due to cleaver tactics of few journalists.
The term ‘Watergate Scandal’ is actually a metonymy. It is used as a term to cover all the power abuse done by President Nixon and his aids during his reign. It ended with impeachment of the president when five people were caught breaking into the Watergate Headquarters. A series of enquiry operations brought other illegal activities by Nixon to spot light. Nixon had used and abused his powers in multiple ways between the time period of two years. The incident had brought global shame on American politics.
The scandal was uncovered by journalists. Consequently, it brought a huge shift amongst people regarding journalism around the world. It was one of those few incidents when people saw the intangible power of journalism. Idealisms, ethics, morales and ambitions were discussed and perspectives were changed amongst the youth. Naturally there was an increase in people choosing journalism as their career, having only seen the difference it can make. By 1990s there was a whole group of journalist doing some of the best journalism history had ever seen. In a discussion about the same, Stephen Burgard, Director of School of Journalism at Northeastern University, called this period as the ‘Golden Age of Newspapers’.
This psychology is always seen amongst the youth. They have a knack to pursue the latest trends. Ironically, it is seen in every field and sector in such magnitudes that creating trends has become the new trend.
Shraddha Patil.