Are our assessments of falsehood misguided?

For three decades, during which I have been afflicted with the ailment of journalistic writing, I have published thousands of articles during this period. However, I have never managed to overcome the point of questioning. I have yet to reach the stage of certainty, and I don’t believe I will until the Almighty reclaims His trust; the spirit that possesses this human-like and rather flawed clay.

Furthermore, I wonder about falsehood, or what seems -in my opinion- to be so. Are my assessments false? I will provide examples from my own experiences:

A colleague and journalist friend; a person I admire and whose constantly changing positions have been the subject of my contemplation before my discontent, used to discuss with me their work patterns at a newspaper. As its owner would tell them, “The salary is low, but i can grant you a space where you can generate income.” The aforementioned spaces in the newspaper included paid materials, a column praising or criticizing opponents by prior arrangement, and extortion of the stubborn. Their boss used these methods to amass wealth.

Hence, in regards to those individuals we’re currently watching on satellite TV screens; a number of them are graduates of the same school of journalism. Frankly, I view them with a mixture of pity and contempt: pity for the self-deception, and contempt for the positions they have boxed themselves in.

Surely, I won’t go as far as to assert that what they publish can only be viewed as mere fabrications; perhaps my assessment of the falsehood is misguided.

One of the accounts relayed by the same friend, took place after he become an editor-in-chief of a newspaper in Khartoum, he discovered that scheduling visits and accompanying officials on foreign trips in particular relied on the concept of “my friend and your connection,” in a near-monopoly that favors a select group known for their loyalty to the trip’s revenues and the often-dollar stipend. Therefore, he joined that club, unafraid or timid. Frankly, it makes me shudder; I’m not that much of a puritanical; perhaps my assessment of the falsehood is misguided.

An individual sat in the newsroom, which was crowded with editors, across from the editor-in-chief’s office, as the latter was ajar. He then launched into a tirade of slander against the editor-in-chief, accusing him of consuming ill-gotten wealth, betraying trust, breaking promises, and financial as well as moral corruption. He left after exhausting his incredible energy in slander. The editor-in-chief promptly emerged, sharing all the shortcomings of his former comrade and current adversary. The journalists in attendance gaped at what they heard.

Iam not entirely sure if one of them was spreading lies about the other, or if both were taking turns in exposing dirty laundry, or perhaps my assessment of the falsehood was misguided. What matters is that, at least one of these two senior journalists carries the pen of integrity and pure patriotism, delving into the consciences of the Forces of Freedom and Change (FFC), the Coordination-body of the Democratic and Civil Forces (Tagadom), the Sudan Founding Alliance (Tasees), in addition to the radical change movement, as well as everyone connected to the revolution, describing them as traitors and agents!!

A dear colleague has gained a significant number of readers and admirers who await his column every morning, for his apparent boldness in criticizing corruption and shortcomings, compound with a dose of biting sarcasm. To the point that some good democrats classified him as having paved his own way.
Once, another colleague came to him and informed him with great enthusiasm that the governor so-and-so was accusing him of fraud. The governor in question claimed to have a copy of the check received by the accused from a semi-governmental institution with which he had a famous dispute on an earlier date. The governor added that his position in regards to the situation; as he sided with his opponents was a paid one.

The latter colleague who went through the trouble of relaying the news thought that this was an opportunity for his colleague to restore his dignity and honor, which the governor had squandered in front of many attendees, in a claim backed with witnesses. He imagined this will be an opportunity for the accused to restore the reputation of journalism as a profession and journalists as well. However, the colleague relaying the incident told me that our colleague -the accused in question- failed to utter a word, he faintly murmured, and the only thing he’d picked up on was… “Just let him be.” And indeed, he did… as a snake holding locust in its mouth won’t bite.. Were that journalist’s positions false, or was my assessment of the falsehood impaired? Here is our friend filling the horizon, relying on the glow of “dignity,” and under the pretext of fresh patriotism, sparing no one who was suspected of accompanying or supporting the revolution.

A prominent journalist and unionist -some claim he is entitled to the position he held since the days of Al-Bashir, from which he was absent for the duration of the revolutionary government (2019-2021), is now returning to occupy the same position, carried on the spears of the dignity rifles.
A discerning friend brought to my attention an article written by that writer, published in (2019) in (Assayha) newspaper, in which he glorified the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and attacked his critics, who had called for its expulsion from Khartoum. He hints at the racist motives behind these calls. At the moment, the same journalist is taking on the task of justifying and supporting the war of dignity against the Rapid Support Forces. Is his previous position, just six years ago, false, or is his new position? Or is the hypothesis that never leaves my thoughts true? that my assessment of falsehood is misguided? Allah is the victor.