"It's all storytelling, you know. That's what journalism is all about"
About this Quote
The subtext is double-edged. On one side, it’s a case for empathy and accessibility: if you can’t translate policy into lived experience, you haven’t really informed anyone. On the other, it concedes the dangerous permeability between reporting and performance. Storytelling implies choices: what opens the segment, whose voice carries authority, which images do the moral work, what gets left on the cutting-room floor. Those choices can illuminate reality or quietly script it.
Context matters: Brokaw comes from an era when three networks helped set a shared national agenda, and “anchor” wasn’t just a job title - it was a civic role. In today’s fractured, algorithm-driven media environment, the line reads less like reassurance and more like an admission that narrative is the battlefield. Everyone is telling stories; journalism’s credibility depends on showing its receipts while still earning attention. The intent is to remind us that objectivity isn’t the absence of narrative - it’s discipline inside it.
Quote Details
| Topic | Writing |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Brokaw, Tom. (2026, January 15). It's all storytelling, you know. That's what journalism is all about. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/its-all-storytelling-you-know-thats-what-163288/
Chicago Style
Brokaw, Tom. "It's all storytelling, you know. That's what journalism is all about." FixQuotes. January 15, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/its-all-storytelling-you-know-thats-what-163288/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"It's all storytelling, you know. That's what journalism is all about." FixQuotes, 15 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/its-all-storytelling-you-know-thats-what-163288/. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.


