There is a multitude of ethics codes and books written about ethical practice in journalism, that cover different mediums individually or about journalism in general. Their main purposes are to make sure we, as journalists, report as ethically and as responsibly as possible, and that we are held accountable for our actions when going about finding, assembling and publishing a story. A journalist must abide to these different guidelines as much as possible—or at least, as can be adhered to in certain circumstances. They must “put events in context in a way that turns information into knowledge,” but not everyone does. In this essay, I will be citing recent Canadian media coverage where ethical standards were not upheld, as well as compare and …show more content…
Some of the sections to look carefully at pertaining to this essay are accuracy, accountability, digital media publication. “Accuracy is the moral imperative of journalists and news organizations, and should not be compromised”; it’s what journalists should seek out in finding stories and their accompanying sources, what they must take responsibility for. On that note, journalists are accountable for the fairness and reliability, the distinction between news and opinion of all reporting. Finally, under digital media, journalists must be careful to name all sources of media, they must obtain permission from those they are displaying in their publications, and “use these photos and videos for news and public interest purposes only, and not to serve voyeuristic …show more content…
They have been respectful to how they went about reporting on such a tragic incident, and careful to not be too intense when describing what happened, all while still giving enough detail to give the full story. If the media had gone any further to describe the scene of the crime or what had happened any further, their words could have caused harm to the audience who would be consuming the media; the survivors of the terror attack, the families of all the victims deceased or living, the Muslim community in Quebec and elsewhere in Canada, all of these different groups of people could have been severely traumatized all over again had the media overstepped the boundary of
Over recent years high profile cases have brought to the forefront, questions of ethics in journalism. The purpose of this thesis will be to investigate the significance and context of a past case in which a journalist and news organization engaged in questionable operations to report the news. The issue being discussed is the considerable attention gained by the local media for the negative role they played in the Sept 27th 1990 “Henry's Publick House” incident. This thesis will address ethical questions within journalism from the viewpoint of the news organization of this case study and their breach in ethics.
In Rushworth Kidder’s book “How Good People Make Tough Choices,” Kidder provides a series of different methods, codes and examples of what being an ethical journalist could mean. He gives examples of different situations where a person’s ethics are tested and what would be a good way to deal with these situations. He starts by explaining the difference between things that are right-versus-right dilemmas, and those that are right-versus-wrong dilemmas.
In comparing ethical issues surrounding the journalists in “All The President’s Men” and “Welcome To Sarajevo”, there are several ethical issues that the journalists experienced. Ethics are an important aspect of journalism, since journalists face a multitude of ethical issues within their industry. Therefore, there are ethical guidelines that journalists’ use called “The Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics” [SPJ Code of Ethics]. When analyzing how the journalists in “All The President’s Men” and “Welcome To Sarajevo”, one can refer to the SPJ Code of Ethics to observe the possible ethical issues the journalists experienced. The four main concepts in the SPJ Code of Ethics are: seek truth and report it, minimize harm, act independently,
...emain respectable in the journalistic field, it is imperative to abide by all constitutional laws and ethical values.
Theses and Professional Projects from the College of Journalism and Mass Communications. Paper 2. http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/journalismdiss/2
In “Reporting the News” by George C. Edwards III, Martin P. Wattenberg, and Robert L. Lineberry, the main idea is how the media determines what to air, where to get said stories that will air, how the media presents the news, and the medias effect on the general public. “Reporting The News” is a very strong and detailed article. The authors’ purpose is to inform the readers of what goes on in the news media. This can be inferred by the authors’ tone. The authors’ overall tone is critical of the topics that are covered. The tone can be determined by the authors’ strong use of transitions, specific examples, and phrases or words that indicate analysis. To summarize, first, the authors’ indicate that the media chooses its stories that will air
No matter the branch of media, the quality of the report depends on the journalist. Most of the content produced is by individual reporters, who are struggling to please the masses. Of course, there are some journalists report heresy in order to produce a story. But there are still reporters, such as Jeanne Meserve of CNN, who are honest. Wilkie even said himself that some, “reporters were unwitting accomplices,” who, “trusted official sources,” which were false or misleading. For example, in "Hurricane Katrina Day by Day" from National Geographic, the content was clear and truthful. Part of this could be due to the amount of resources of the large company. This allows each reporter be be able to asses the situation more skillfully. In the case of Jeanne Meserve of CNN, she was not “able to reach that part of the city” that she was asked to report on. If she had more bountiful resources, she would’ve had a better understanding of the situation. Instead of blaming the whole genre of media, such as television, Wilkie should examine how the quality of the reporter affects the overall
It is not uncommon to hear people complaining about what they hear on the news. Everyone knows it and the media themselves knows it as well. Some of the most renowned journalists have even covered the the media’s issues in detail. Biased news outlets have flooded everyday news. We find that journalism’s greatest problems lie in the media’s inability for unbiased reporting, the tendency to use the ignorance of their audience to create a story, and their struggles to maintain relevance.
The introduction of the internet to modern society has brought about a new age of information relation. Since there is no longer a need to wait until the next print day, news from all over the world is available at a person’s fingertips within hours or even minutes of the event. With this advent of such easily accessible information, new problems for the news media have also arisen. Aside from potentially losing good economic standing because newspapers are no longer being purchased in the quantities they used to be, the credibility of the information itself is also put into question. No one would argue that credibility of news sources is unimportant, but there is a discrepancy in what takes precedence; economy and speed or getting the information out correctly at the first publishing by taking the time to make sure all facts are checked. The importance of having a system of checks on all information submitted is paramount. People trust what they read and believe it to be so without always questioning. If all information were to not be checked thoroughly, there would be instances where people read an article only for information included to be wrong and they go on believing such information. This can be very dangerous as misinformed people make misinformed decisions. With an increase in errors being made by citizen bloggers and even major publications, many are worried that journalistic ethics and credibility in the news media are being sacrificed in order to maintain swiftness in the news circuit and to retain personal profits. Though getting information to the masses quickly is a major part of the media’s importance, this should not mean that the credibility of that information being presented should be sacrificed for it...
The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) provides a very clear and thorough Code of Ethics, which serves as a good definition of ethical journalism. According to this code, an ethical journalist must try to minimize any potential harm done to people directly involved with the event being reported. Such a journalist should also act independently of any personal biases, and be responsive to any criticism of their work. Finally, a truly ethical journalist must seek to find and report the truth (Society). Common sense reaffirms these guidelines. When one thinks of ethical behavior, one usually thinks along terms of being truthful, appreciative of others, acting responsively and using fair judgement. All of these concepts are explicitly stated in the SPJ's Code of Ethics.
Much is being discovered when the public, also known as the consumers and recipients of the news, share their views on journalistic practices. One might suggest that traditional journalism has, in due course, come to an end. Although, there are definitely problems that the public runs into with public journalism taking over. A few of those arguments include their content, the journalists, and the effects that it has on their public audience.
An argument can be made that Journalism is one of the very few professions in the world of media that is handled with some sort of dignity and pride. After reading “The Elements of Journalism” by Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel, I realized how important journalism is to each and every one of us. Whether you’re a writer or a reader, the back and forth exchange between provider and consumer is extremely important in pushing society forward. Journalism after all is designed to challenge society, promote new ideas and spark conversation between one another. Despite the positives of journalism, there are issues that exist within the profession that cannot be excused and cannot be ignored.
"Journalism Ethics Online Journalism Ethics Gatekeeping." Journalism Ethics for the Global Citizen. Web. 05 Dec. 2010. .
In trying to attract new audiences, news media have begun to transition from reporting to becoming a form of entertainment. With the meteoric rise of social media’s role as a news source, the fight for an increase of diversity in the media, and the ever-growing desire of immediate content, the future of responsible journalism is more important than ever. Ask yourself, why do I think the way I do? Where do my political views originate? How do I prove them? Most likely, it is due to the biased portrayal of issues in the media and the politicization that accompanies what we consume. Now, compare your views to your preferred news reporting entity. More than likely, they are the same.
Meyers, C. (2010). The 'Standard Journalism ethics: a philosophical approach? Oxford University Press. Nordenstreng. K. (1995)