If the highest law of journalism is 'to the tell the Truth and shame the devil' then the Golden Age of Objectivity was the 1950s. The 1951 government film 'Duck and Cover' advised on what to do if the see the flash of a nuclear bomb. Fear of Communism and the threat of atomic war moved us into the 'donut hole' of consensus.
Historian Daniel Hallin uses donuts as a metaphor for the news. (Hallin, 2010) The donut hole is the ‘sphere of consensus;’ unquestionable values and unchallengeable truths. The donut itself is ‘legitimate controversy.’ This is the literal ‘sweet spot’ where undecided issues can be debated and discussed. Outside the donut is the ‘sphere of deviance’ reserved for opinions outside the mainstream of society.
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