The fact that peer pressure is the "accountability mechanism" means that pretty much the only thing journalists are ever held accountable for is stuff that goes

The fact that peer pressure is the "accountability mechanism" means that pretty much the only thing journalists are ever held accountable for is stuff that goes against the beliefs of the class of people who graduate from Princeton and Columbia and get jobs at prestigious publications. Stuff like spreading misinformation, inciting political violence and falsely undermining trust in democratic elections is fine so long as it's done in the name of the correct elite-supported political causes. Hell, I've just watched the media over here in the UK create a fuel supply crisis through irresponsible reporting - they posted breathless headlines about petrol stations running out of fuel and having to close which actually created the crisis by scaring everyone into going out and filling up their tanks at once. In reality, about five stations in the country were shut prior to the panic buying - so few even the people who'd tried to go to one probably wouldn't realize there was meant to be a crisis. But our fuel supply chains just don't have the capacity to cope with everyone buying several times as much as usual once the press started a panic. Is there any accountability for this? Of course not. They just kept on running endless sob stories about the people affected by the crisis and how terrible it is for them, making money off suffering they created.