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Media Ethics, Part 2

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Title: Media Ethics, Part 2


1
Media Ethics, Part 2
  • How professional codes guide journalists behavior

2
Schedule Update
  • Today Ethics, Part 2
  • Friday Guest speaker
  • Ted Warren, The Associated Press
  • Photojournalism in the digital era
  • Next week Media Law

3
Calculating your grade
  • 3 exams _at_ 100 300
  • 1 paper _at_ 30 30
  • Clicker quizzes 20 _at_ 10 40
  • Total points so far 340
  • Still to come 1 paper, 1 exam, extra credit
  • Total points for semester 500

4
Student Course Evaluations
  • On-line at http//www.webs.uidaho.edu/studenteval
    s/
  • Please be constructive, specific in responses to
    open-ended questions
  • Surveys are anonymous, confidential
  • Last day to participate Sunday, Dec. 12

5
Clicker Quiz 1
  • Which philosopher advocated the Golden Mean,
    which suggests moderation between extremes?
  • a) Socrates
  • b) Sophocles
  • c) Plato
  • d) Aristotle
  • e) Thucydides

6
Clicker Quiz 1
  • Which philosopher advocated the Golden Mean,
    which suggests moderation between extremes?
  • d) Aristotle

7
Ethics Enforcement
  • Journalists arent licensed, so face no formal
    sanctions for unethical acts
  • Many groups have ethics codes, but lack
    enforcement power
  • Peer pressure, public embarrassment are only
    consequences for violations

8
Professional Codes
  • Radio-TV News Directors Association
  • American Advertising Federation
  • Society of Professional Journalists
  • Public Relations Society of America

9
Code of Ethics
  • Public Relations Society of America
  • Act as responsible advocates
  • Provide a voice in marketplace of ideas
  • Adhere to highest standards of accuracy, truth

10
SPJ Code of Ethics
  • Society of Professional Journalists
  • Seek truth and report it
  • Minimize harm
  • Act independently
  • Be accountable

11
Common ethical violations
  • Sensationalism
  • Conflict of interest
  • Fakery
  • Plagiarism

12
Fakery
  • 1992 Dateline NBC
  • Report on safety of Chevrolet trucks
  • Claim side-mounted fuel tanks prone to explode
    in collision
  • NBC rigged gas tanks with igniters
  • Video showed fuel spill, flames

13
1992 NBC
  • VIDEO When Good Journalists Do Bad Things
    Truthtelling the Public Trust
  • Poynter Institute www.poynter.org

14
1992 NBC
  • GM filed lawsuit lawyers negotiated
  • NBC retracted story, apologized
  • NBC News President Michael Gartner resigned
  • GM used PR strategy for crisis management

15
Plagiarism
  • The act of taking ideas, thoughts or words from
    another and passing them off as your own
  • Closely related to fabrication (making up
    stories, facts, quotes)

16
Plagiarism Case studies
  • 1981 Janet Cooke
  • 1998 Stephen Glass
  • 2003 Jayson Blair

17
Janet Cooke
  • Washington Post, 1981
  • Jimmys World
  • 8-year-old heroin addict
  • Illustrated urban drug problems in D.C.
  • Cooke won Pulitzer

18
Janet Cooke
  • Problems with Jimmys World
  • Jimmy didnt exist
  • Story couldnt be verified
  • Post returned Pulitzer
  • Cooke resigned

19
Stephen Glass
  • Writer for The New Republic
  • Fabricated dozens of stories, 1997-1998
  • Subject of movie (2003) Shattered Glass
  • http//www.youtube.com/watch?vnA4N9ex56jA

20
Jayson Blair
  • New York Times
  • Fabricated stories
  • Cut and pasted from other newspapers Web sites
  • Made up sources descriptions

21
Jayson Blair
  • Resigned May, 2003
  • Blamed Times editors
  • Interview with Katie Couric, 2004
  • http//www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/445599544
    55995

22
Fallout from Blair Affair
  • 2 top editors resigned
  • Times appointed ombudsman to improve credibility

23
Holding the media accountable
  • Ombudsmen (or women)
  • Journalism reviews
  • Watchdog groups
  • News councils

24
Ombudsman
  • Staff member assigned to hear, respond to
    audience complaints
  • Original purpose government position in Sweden

25
Ombudsman
  • Also known as
  • Ombuds officer
  • Reader representative
  • Reader advocate
  • Public editor (New York Times)

26
www.newsombudsmen.org
27
Journalism reviews
  • Columbia Journalism Review (CJR)
  • American Journalism Review (AJR)
  • Quill (published by SPJ)

28
Watchdog groups
  • Founded in 1986 by Jeff Cohen
  • Believes corporate media has conservative bias
  • Monthly magazine Extra!

29
Watchdog groups
  • Media Research Center
  • Conservative group founded by Brent Bozell, 1987
  • Believes media have liberal bias

30
News Councils
  • City or state groups
  • Public media members
  • Review complaints issue reports
  • No enforcement powers except public opinion

31
News Councils
  • Mission To help maintain public trust and
    confidence in the news media by creating a
    forum where the public and the news media can
    engage each other in examining standards of
    journalistic fairness. www.wanewscouncil.org

32
Clicker Quiz 2
  • Which of the SPJ ethical standards did NBC
    violate with the Dateline report?
  • Seek truth and report it
  • Minimize harm
  • Act independently
  • Be accountable
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