Personal Stories Vs. Facts: Getting to the Bottom of the Story.

Have you ever wondered what it takes to get the complete picture of a story? When we hear about a problem, a fight, or a war we often get two different types of reports: personal stories and facts and statistics. But which one do you think gives us clearer information about the situation? How do we know what is true or not? Because it is important to get the truth about an issue.

Someone might say personal stories are the best; they want to hear someone who was there; they say you relate better because you feel an emotional connection with the person. You feel their experiences, challenges, triumphs, and pains, and the issues become more real.

But I think facts and statistics are more important. They are like the two peas in a pod, facts provide the building block of information that helps us understand the issue. Facts are like the puzzle pieces that help us see the complete picture. Statistics on the other hand show the trend, the pattern and correlations if any, they offer a wider view and keep us well informed. Facts and Statistics provide a complete and accurate picture, they are the truth not just somebody’s feelings or opinions.

For example, a fact about the Russian-Ukraine war is that as of December 2024 a verified total of 12,605 civilians have been killed in Ukraine, another fact is that 1,306 educational structures were damaged and 294 destroyed and teachers have taken to teaching online.

Several people might disagree with me and say facts are boring, that they don't give us the complete picture, they might say personal stories are more interesting and that we can connect some more and then be able to show empathy. But what if someone’s personal story was a lie? This will make the situation look like a joke and probably put people's lives at risk.

Yes, I still believe facts and statistics are very important, we might get misled and confused without them.

So when we learn about something important, let us look for facts and not just rely on personal stories.

I believe this is where journalists come in and I know they can report what happened in detail and clear terms. That way, it helps to prevent the spread of misinformation and we can get a clear and accurate understanding of what's happening.

So next time you are trying to get to the bottom of a story or event, don't forget the duo of facts and statistics.