There's the whole mythology around Watergate, with the intrepid journalists getting evil Nixon impeached.
That's something that's omnipresent in journalist circles, Bernstein and his partner of the heroes of the story.
And at some level, that's how journalists see themselves, the heroes in the story.
No one goes into journalism to blandly report on the weather and the neighborhood lemonade stand. Few even do it now to get the scoop, because the scoop is separate from the journalist. They do it to "make an impact", "achieve social change", etc...
They openly consider themselves activists and agitators and public opinion shapers. Which is why in recent months they have dispensed with "objectivity" in favor of "moral authority".
