CNN recently posted a job advertisement for a reporter who’s main task is to monitor “fake news” online. According to the positon’s description, the ideal candidate should be passionate about debunking “fake news” stories and should be very familiar with the “deepest corners” of the Internet.
CNN posted the advertisement at Turner Jobs. According to the news network, the candidate will work as part of the new media team of CNNMoney. As the team’s newest reporter, this person will cover news stories that have been deemed by the network as “fake news.” In doing so, the reporter will have to point out the inaccuracies in the stories as well as debunk them through follow-up reports.
Aside from these tasks, the reporter will also have to trace the source of these kinds of news stories and identify who advertises and publishes them. As noted by CNN, this is part of the network’s effort to expose the truth.
In terms of the candidate’s character, CNN noted that this reporter should be very passionate about discrediting “fake news.”
“They should get angry every time they see inaccuracy in any story, whether large or small, and whether published by a fake news site or a real one,” CNN stated. “They should be the kind of person who can’t pass by a single rabbit hole without being desperate to jump in to see where it leads.”
Appointing an anti-“fake news” reporter seems a bit contradictory for CNN, especially since this network has been slammed repeatedly as a purveyor of sensationalized and fabricated stories.
Earlier this month, President-elect Donald Trump stated that ever since he won the election, CNN’s rankings have started to drop primarily because of the “fake news” controversy. Also, in Trump’s first press conference this year, he told CNN’s White House correspondent Jim Acosta that the network he works for characterizes the whole notion of “Fake News.”
