Journalism Ethics

Journalists must keep ethics into consideration when writing for the public eye to see. There are a number of things journalists must watch our for. Plagiarism is a huge offense in the journalism community and it is very important to give credit to any source used to gather information and to use quotes and not steal others work as your own. If a journalist plagiarize someones work and makes money off of it they can get in legal trouble.

Journalists should try their best to take an unbiased side in whatever they are reporting. This can be very difficult because every person has their own opinions on different topics and when reporting on a controversial topic a journalist can persuade readers to take their own personal opinion by leaving out the other side of the story or by twisting words to favor their view. Journalist's are supposed to report both sides and be unbiased but all too often you will find reporters reporting the news from their own side. A great example of this is fox news generally reporting the news from a right wing point of view and NBC generally reporting the news from a left wing point of view. Only when journalist report the news in an unbiased fashion can the public take their own personal view on the report.

Journalists must also be careful who they mention in their articles, you can not mention names or post pictures of children under the age of 18. Journalists should also double check their sources before reporting news on somebody because if the information is incorrect you could tarnish someones name and reputation that does not deserve it.

Journalists need to be politically correct, you can not use racist terms or inappropriate language in your articles. Journalists should do their best to research their topics report thoroughly and double check sources along with getting all sides of the story before beginning to write their report. Then when writing the report they should be sure to be honest and unbiased and give credit to any sources that contributed to the report. The report should be written in a professional matter that allows readers to take the presented information and form their own views on the subject. When all of these ethics are applied in journalism, your final report will be fair and unbiased journalism at its best!

An interesting article on Journalism Ethics I found written by Ellen Hume lists the following:

Because journalists are not licensed in the United States, and anyone can pretend he is a journalist, how can you tell if the journalism you are reading is worth your trust? Look for:

Accuracy.

The first rule of journalism ethics is to strive for accuracy: names are spelled correctly, and events are described as they actually happened, not as the journalist, advertiser or publisher hoped they would be.

Both sides of the story.

There is a balanced and comprehensive view of what is happening or has happened. The journalist should be open-minded and let the news emerge from fact-finding.

News dictates what is news.

The journalist is not working to make someone happy, to win advertisers, flatter her friends or to get revenge. The journalist writes about things that are important, informative or interesting. She is independent of the factions she is covering, and loyal first to the public, not to her commercial or political sponsors. Advertisers and publishers should recognize that independence and honesty are necessary for the credibility of the news organization.

News is labeled honestly.

There's nothing wrong with opinions -- except when they are sneakily placed inside stories presented as “news.” An opinion column or editorial should not be called a news report. Let the facts speak for themselves.

(http://www.ellenhume.com/articles/ethics.htm)

-Troy Mashburn