The Need for Ethical Decisions in Journalism
Dennis AuBuchon
June 19, 2009
Before discussing the subject of this article it is necessary to understand what constitutes a journalist. According to Merriam-Webster the definition of a journalist is a person engaged in journalism; especially: a writer or editor for a news medium or a writer who aims at a mass medium. In this respect anyone who writes such as an author or a broadcaster who reports news events is a journalist. Journalism is an honorable profession and that being said there are those who sometimes do not honor that profession with decisions they make.
Journalism involves not only reporters, broadcasters and radio personalities but also authors and writers. They must decide everyday how they will communicate their expertise on a variety of topics. The freedom of speech granted to us in the First Amendment to the Constitution is a distinct right which we all have but how we use that right is the key to ethical decision making by all who write or broadcast news events.
I have great respect for journalists as it is a fine profession. There is a saying one rotten apple spoils the whole bunch. The reputation of all journalists and writers are impacted when someone in the profession makes a decision that lacks integrity and ethical principles. It involves not only the decision to write or broadcast a story without checking the facts but the purpose for the story or news event in the first place.
Ethical decision making by journalists in some circles does not appear to exist while in others it is obvious. Journalists must constantly make decisions about the information they write or present. We have seen examples where news events have been reported for which the source was not verified to be reliable or the information given. In the broadcasting profession which is part of the overall journalism profession it is necessary to always check your sources before reporting or making statements regarding news events. Reporting news events without verifying the details for accuracy and reliability violates all principles of proper journalism. While these stories and examples appear to be few and far between the consequences of such action is reason for all journalists to take note.
Good journalism is a quality that must be developed by those individuals who write for a living or as a hobby. Individuals involved with the art of writing, reporting or broadcasting had to learn their trait. I am an author and I had to learn the techniques of getting my point across on various topics in a way the readers would understand. I feel I am no different than others in the profession. There may be some individuals who have a natural talent for communicating but most of us must learn the best way to convey the purpose of whatever we write. This can be an article, a book or a blog which seems to be on the increase in the technological world we have today. Learning can occur through trial and error or as a result of interaction with other writers and their success, expertise or through formal classes. While I have nothing against classes in technical schools or colleges to learn the basics of how to communicate, it takes time to adjust the principles to your communication techniques. The art of writing and the topics available are endless. The key is to know when to create an article or report a news event based on ethical principles.
These principles can be taught to some extent but the ethical nature of decisions that are made must come from within. One of the principles of ethical behavior in journalism is treating the subjects with respect. There are rules in place in various organizations associated with the art of journalism which have created a set of ethical principles and I commend those that have such principles in place.
The examples previously identified involve ethical decisions which must be made daily for any journalist. The point of this article is to provide some examples of where ethical decisions have been made or not in the journalism profession. First and foremost those in the journalism field must be honest in what they write and/or report. Honesty is a trait that seems to be lacking in many areas of society and journalism is not exempt from this problem. While I am not saying that there are not honest journalists there are those who fail to realize in some respects that this trait does not exist in their writing or broadcasting. Honesty involves providing all the facts void of any opinions unless they are identified in the content.
The topics on which to write are endless and it is important to have accurate and reliable facts in any writing endeavor. True journalism should not make or imply decisions for the public by providing incomplete information. Those in the profession of journalism as I have indicated above must stand up for the principle of doing the right thing for the right reason. I have written many articles where I inject my opinion but I also present facts or conditions that do not necessarily agree with my perspective. This makes the information more acceptable to a wider audience which is the intent of any writing to reach a wide audience and be recognized for their expertise.
News events or article topics must provide both sides of an issue and let the public receiving it decide how they feel. This sometimes involves saying no to a story which should not be broadcast simply for the reason of scooping another network on a news event. It is important when broadcasting a news event that where possible opinion should be removed or if it cannot be removed to make the statement that opinion is involved in the news event. This also applies to authors.
Another principle which sometimes is lacking in journalism is compassion for victims or subjects of news reports, articles or books. All of these have different levels of impact. Many times I have seen examples in the news where those trying to get the story will not take no for an answer. Some news stories are related to those considered to be celebrities and some may say the attention comes with the territory. Attention is one thing but not respecting the wishes of those involved in events when they would like some privacy must be respected. I have to say based on some reported events that this does not always happen and should. We are all individuals and we must place ourselves in their shoes and how we would feel if we were being bombarded by news reporters.
Another aspect that is needed in the ethical decision making is character. Character can be good or bad and it is important that those with the responsibility of reporting news events or stores have good character. This involves integrity and the relationships not only with those in the news but also co-workers. This should be present not only in journalism but all occupations. Journalism involves the work of teams to get the final information which will be transmitted to the public. Those involved in journalism should treat others with respect and respect the work others. This involves providing credit to a whole team not just one individual on a team. News crews and others in journalism comprise a team and when the team looks good everyone benefits. When a team looks bad the whole team looks bad. Getting accurate information broadcasted involves a team effort. The person
We all must make decisions based on our character and the ethical principles upon which we were raised or developed. Journalists are no different they are individuals as well. The impact of decisions by journalists and the organizations for which they work can have far reaching impact dependent upon the nature of the information. There have been many cases where I feel and others that broadcast news may be on thin ice in reporting some events. This can involve details of criminal activity which contain how they accomplished their acts it gives others the same ideas including terrorists. Terrorists do not need our help in giving them ideas to attack us. News events as to the security of our various infrastructures I feel violates ethical principles as it may harm our national security. I am not going to specifically identify some reports that have taken place in the past as I do not want to draw attention to any inadequacies that may or may not exist. While events may be news how and what is reported should be carefully weighed before speaking the first word that in some cases gets distributed all over the world.
To summarize ethical decisions in journalism is important as it can and does impact how people react to events which are being discussed through articles, books or being broadcasted. Ethics is comparable to integrity and the principles involved. Any individual involved in journalism must provide accurate and reliable information. If information is not accurate, reliable or complete it does not warrant the designation of being something on which we can rely. We are bombarded from all types of communication mediums presenting information on events or topics and as a result we develop our own opinions based on what is communicated. If the information lacks the necessary reliability it affects any decision we make on the issue being covered.
Another aspect of making ethical decisions in journalism is the need for compassion for victims. This is something that appears to be lacking in many respects by journalists when covering events that are important to the public. I am not saying all journalists fall into this category but all journalists must consider the psychological impact on victims of events in the news. Sometimes victims want their privacy respected and to some extent this is honored but there are those who do not respect this kind of request.
The last point to make involves news events which have an impact on our national security. Sometimes events point to deficiencies in our infrastructure but the question to ask is it ethical to point out these deficiencies so those who want to do us harm can get new ideas for ways to hurt us if they donīt already know. Events associated with our national security should be carefully weighed before deciding to broadcast information and if the decision is yes the details should be restricted. I feel there are ways to report events but not identify the specifics as to the weaknesses.
Journalism involves not only reporters, broadcasters and radio personalities but also authors and writers. They must decide everyday how they will communicate their expertise on a variety of topics. The freedom of speech granted to us in the First Amendment to the Constitution is a distinct right which we all have but how we use that right is the key to ethical decision making by all who write or broadcast news events.
I have great respect for journalists as it is a fine profession. There is a saying one rotten apple spoils the whole bunch. The reputation of all journalists and writers are impacted when someone in the profession makes a decision that lacks integrity and ethical principles. It involves not only the decision to write or broadcast a story without checking the facts but the purpose for the story or news event in the first place.
Ethical decision making by journalists in some circles does not appear to exist while in others it is obvious. Journalists must constantly make decisions about the information they write or present. We have seen examples where news events have been reported for which the source was not verified to be reliable or the information given. In the broadcasting profession which is part of the overall journalism profession it is necessary to always check your sources before reporting or making statements regarding news events. Reporting news events without verifying the details for accuracy and reliability violates all principles of proper journalism. While these stories and examples appear to be few and far between the consequences of such action is reason for all journalists to take note.
Good journalism is a quality that must be developed by those individuals who write for a living or as a hobby. Individuals involved with the art of writing, reporting or broadcasting had to learn their trait. I am an author and I had to learn the techniques of getting my point across on various topics in a way the readers would understand. I feel I am no different than others in the profession. There may be some individuals who have a natural talent for communicating but most of us must learn the best way to convey the purpose of whatever we write. This can be an article, a book or a blog which seems to be on the increase in the technological world we have today. Learning can occur through trial and error or as a result of interaction with other writers and their success, expertise or through formal classes. While I have nothing against classes in technical schools or colleges to learn the basics of how to communicate, it takes time to adjust the principles to your communication techniques. The art of writing and the topics available are endless. The key is to know when to create an article or report a news event based on ethical principles.
These principles can be taught to some extent but the ethical nature of decisions that are made must come from within. One of the principles of ethical behavior in journalism is treating the subjects with respect. There are rules in place in various organizations associated with the art of journalism which have created a set of ethical principles and I commend those that have such principles in place.
The examples previously identified involve ethical decisions which must be made daily for any journalist. The point of this article is to provide some examples of where ethical decisions have been made or not in the journalism profession. First and foremost those in the journalism field must be honest in what they write and/or report. Honesty is a trait that seems to be lacking in many areas of society and journalism is not exempt from this problem. While I am not saying that there are not honest journalists there are those who fail to realize in some respects that this trait does not exist in their writing or broadcasting. Honesty involves providing all the facts void of any opinions unless they are identified in the content.
The topics on which to write are endless and it is important to have accurate and reliable facts in any writing endeavor. True journalism should not make or imply decisions for the public by providing incomplete information. Those in the profession of journalism as I have indicated above must stand up for the principle of doing the right thing for the right reason. I have written many articles where I inject my opinion but I also present facts or conditions that do not necessarily agree with my perspective. This makes the information more acceptable to a wider audience which is the intent of any writing to reach a wide audience and be recognized for their expertise.
News events or article topics must provide both sides of an issue and let the public receiving it decide how they feel. This sometimes involves saying no to a story which should not be broadcast simply for the reason of scooping another network on a news event. It is important when broadcasting a news event that where possible opinion should be removed or if it cannot be removed to make the statement that opinion is involved in the news event. This also applies to authors.
Another principle which sometimes is lacking in journalism is compassion for victims or subjects of news reports, articles or books. All of these have different levels of impact. Many times I have seen examples in the news where those trying to get the story will not take no for an answer. Some news stories are related to those considered to be celebrities and some may say the attention comes with the territory. Attention is one thing but not respecting the wishes of those involved in events when they would like some privacy must be respected. I have to say based on some reported events that this does not always happen and should. We are all individuals and we must place ourselves in their shoes and how we would feel if we were being bombarded by news reporters.
Another aspect that is needed in the ethical decision making is character. Character can be good or bad and it is important that those with the responsibility of reporting news events or stores have good character. This involves integrity and the relationships not only with those in the news but also co-workers. This should be present not only in journalism but all occupations. Journalism involves the work of teams to get the final information which will be transmitted to the public. Those involved in journalism should treat others with respect and respect the work others. This involves providing credit to a whole team not just one individual on a team. News crews and others in journalism comprise a team and when the team looks good everyone benefits. When a team looks bad the whole team looks bad. Getting accurate information broadcasted involves a team effort. The person
We all must make decisions based on our character and the ethical principles upon which we were raised or developed. Journalists are no different they are individuals as well. The impact of decisions by journalists and the organizations for which they work can have far reaching impact dependent upon the nature of the information. There have been many cases where I feel and others that broadcast news may be on thin ice in reporting some events. This can involve details of criminal activity which contain how they accomplished their acts it gives others the same ideas including terrorists. Terrorists do not need our help in giving them ideas to attack us. News events as to the security of our various infrastructures I feel violates ethical principles as it may harm our national security. I am not going to specifically identify some reports that have taken place in the past as I do not want to draw attention to any inadequacies that may or may not exist. While events may be news how and what is reported should be carefully weighed before speaking the first word that in some cases gets distributed all over the world.
To summarize ethical decisions in journalism is important as it can and does impact how people react to events which are being discussed through articles, books or being broadcasted. Ethics is comparable to integrity and the principles involved. Any individual involved in journalism must provide accurate and reliable information. If information is not accurate, reliable or complete it does not warrant the designation of being something on which we can rely. We are bombarded from all types of communication mediums presenting information on events or topics and as a result we develop our own opinions based on what is communicated. If the information lacks the necessary reliability it affects any decision we make on the issue being covered.
Another aspect of making ethical decisions in journalism is the need for compassion for victims. This is something that appears to be lacking in many respects by journalists when covering events that are important to the public. I am not saying all journalists fall into this category but all journalists must consider the psychological impact on victims of events in the news. Sometimes victims want their privacy respected and to some extent this is honored but there are those who do not respect this kind of request.
The last point to make involves news events which have an impact on our national security. Sometimes events point to deficiencies in our infrastructure but the question to ask is it ethical to point out these deficiencies so those who want to do us harm can get new ideas for ways to hurt us if they donīt already know. Events associated with our national security should be carefully weighed before deciding to broadcast information and if the decision is yes the details should be restricted. I feel there are ways to report events but not identify the specifics as to the weaknesses.
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