Janet Cooke, the Originator of Fake News?

            An article written in 1980 by Janet Cooke called Jimmy’s World was written to illustrate the effects heroin can have on individuals. But the article was fictitious, written just to obtain a high amount of viewers.

Some common news elements take place in the article making it very interesting. Just the title of the article can draw in anyone. The article is odd and has a shock factor on its viewers. They might not care about the heroin epidemic but an eight year old kid addicted makes me care about it. Also the area where Jimmy is said to live in the article may affect the residents living in the area. The time that it was written could have been a time where heroin was on the rise and people realized that it was bad and this article emphasized that feeling.

Some strength’s that support the article is the amount of quotes in the article. Not just from Jimmy’s family but from doctors and law enforcement. Make it seems like a lot of research had gone into the article. The emotional pull the article has is another way the article holds weight. It makes the reader cautious about themselves and loved ones. They don’t this happening to apart of their own family.

The article is very emotional and drew me in straight from the title. After reading it make me hate heroin, disgusts me. I wanted to do something about it, help little Jimmy or take his parents away. It would also get the attention of others like new stations. What new station wouldn’t contact Washington Post or Janet Cooke to do a report on this emotional story?

The time this article was written there could have been a heroin problem in the area of Washington making the story has some relevance. This story being so touching and informative about heroin and the effects it has on family could make The Washington Post a credible article. It could have been written to market them. News was slow and just constructed a story to stay relevant and stay on store shelves.

The article is very interesting but the back story is even interesting. Janet Cooke was looking to be hired by the Post when they were accepting African American writers. She lied about her credentials as a writer and also lied about the story to land the job, which she did. This wasn’t her first fictitious article and its very surprising that she wasn’t noticed earlier.