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ETHICS OF JOURNALISM

ETHICS OF JOURNALISM. credibility. CREDIBILITY. The 1980’s brought to journalism an outbreak of unusual violations. Several reporters were caught making up stories or parts of stories.

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ETHICS OF JOURNALISM

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  1. ETHICS OF JOURNALISM credibility

  2. CREDIBILITY • The 1980’s brought to journalism an outbreak of unusual violations. Several reporters were caught making up stories or parts of stories. • One person had to give back a Pulitzer Prize, journalism’s highest honor, when it was discovered that the main character in her prize-winning story, and 8 year-old heroin addict, didn’t exist

  3. ACCURACY • To the ethical journalist, accuracy has a special meaning. Close doesn’t count. How often does the press achieve this accuracy? • Objectivity: The state of mind that journalists acquire to make them fair, neutral observers of events and issues. Journalists do not permit their personal feelings, likes or dislikes, to color news stories.

  4. More… • Good Taste: Avoid sensationalism, and stay away from racy material. Seek understatement, not overstatement. • Fairness to all: Everyone in your audience-regardless of race, color, philosophy, religion, gender, age, or economic status-has an equal right to expect to be treated fairly • Plagiarism: An absolute! Someone else’s work isn’t yours.

  5. You got it, more notes… • Attribution: Identify where the information came from. Avoid anonymous sources. • Libel Law: “If you print that I’ll sue you for everything!” • Libel laws are complex and change. • Libel is seldom considered a crime. It is usually a civil action, heard in civil court. • Libel is printed false defamation of character. Spoken defamation is slander, which we include under the general heading of libel.

  6. Don’t hate Mr. Q • Defenses against Libel: The best defense against a successful libel suit is good reporting. Check all facts. • Hazelwood Decision: 1983, staff members of The Spectrum, the student newspaper of Hazelwood, Mo., East High School, prepared a series of stories about student pregnancy and the effects of divorce on students. The principal, Robert Reynolds, deleted the two pages of the paper on the pages they appeared.

  7. … • Reynolds deleted them because the stories invaded the privacy of the students involved, even though they were unnamed. He also thought the information was inappropriate for the younger students at the school. • The students sued. A federal trial judge ruled in favor of the school district. The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled for the students. Huge reaction ensued.

  8. Your Assignment • Working in teams, prepare a code of standards for The Stampede. Compare your code to the First Amendment standards of free press and to the code of ethics for professional journalists.

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