[Reporter’s Notebook] There Is No Map at a Scale of 1:1

“Why does the media only exaggerate the bad parts?”
The mission of journalism is not to create a 1:1 scale map
Choosing to reveal problems for improvement

‘Accuracy, Precision, Consistency, Wholeness’

In Borges’ short story “The Passion for Science,” there is a tale about an empire that worships these words. The people of this country could not tolerate omission, reduction, understatement, or exaggeration even on maps. They strove to create a “map identical to reality.” A map with a scale of 1:1. They attempted to reproduce mountains, seas, houses, and roads at the same scale as the world. A map containing the whole, not just parts. But it was futile. People realized that such a map was not only impossible but also meaningless.

There were many reader responses to the article “Solar Power and Firewood - The Original Tracer.” Among them, memorable comments included: “Only the negative parts are pointed out,” “It could instill a negative perception of the entire solar power industry,” and “It might be mistaken as a story about renewable energy in general.”

I agree. There must be many well-executed Official Development Assistance (ODA) projects. However, the article did not cover them. It focused on the problematic areas, vulnerabilities, failures, and issues related to overseas aid. The climate crisis in developing countries is severe. I also agree on the necessity of aid through renewable energy.

But borrowing from Borges, I say this: the goal of this report was not to draw a 1:1 scale map regarding ODA. That would be meaningless and impossible. Averaging each overseas aid case arithmetically might yield a good score. The key point is that highlighting such a flattened average is not the mission of journalism. Even if a moderate average is given, it would not represent the universal truth.

President Yoon Suk-yeol promised in his policy speech on the 31st of last month to “expand the development aid budget to around 6.5 trillion won.” When that money crosses borders and reaches developing countries, the individual experiences felt by beneficiaries (citizens of recipient countries) differ. Taxpayers (citizens of donor countries) have the right to know. If there were special damages, inconveniences, or injustices caused by the aid, those would be the vulnerabilities and sensitivities of our country’s aid.

Journalism must make choices. It must focus on dynamic and meaningful individuals. To reveal problems, expose stains, and promote improvement. The goal was not a 1:1 scale map. It was a precise sketch map.

We often hear the criticism, “Why does the media only exaggerate the bad parts?” Sometimes, this sounds like a call to draw a map exactly the size of reality. It is a complacent and conservative argument. To such comments, I want to respond with this sentence: “The next generations thought that vast map was useless, and somewhat irreverently, entrusted the map to the mercy of the sun and mirrors.” This is the ending of the story.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.