Leadership: Leaders, Followers, Environments

External checks: experts and expert field

The media often uses pundits or experts to comment or translate in simpler terms business, scientific, and political events. The use of expert sources by the media serves three purposes: it adds credibility to news reports; it provides facts and verifies findings; and it enhances objectivity. However, the public seems to be less trustful of expert sources, at the very same time that the media's influence is more fragmented and waning in importance.⁴⁵ In order for the media to remain a powerful check and balance in civic and political issues, its expert sources cannot be widely perceived as partisan. And in the business world, experts can be important in the acceptance of new products: when a new smart phone or a new automobile comes out, many people turn to expert reviews for guidance. Because of their credibility and impartiality in the past, such reviews have had powerful impact on consumer opinions and purchases.