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As journalism students in the classroom, we like to believe the illustrious stories we've read of Hearst and Pulitzer are just that, stories. It's time we think again. Checkbook journalism is plaguing our field today as the newest type of yellow Journalism in the fact that someone is getting rich from the convenience of another person.
Checkbook journalism is when reporters or news organizations pay sources for information, and for a variety of reasons most news outlets frown on such practices or ban them outright.
The Society of Professional Journalists stands by that checkbook journalism is wrong and shouldn't be used - ever.
In this day and age, it would be naive to deny the effects competition weighs on media outlets. News organizations not wanting to be scooped on a story might resort to checkbook journalism, but we as the future of journalism need to stand by the fact that competition doesn't give us license to cross ethical boundaries.
Unfortunately this is still happening, more than we think. Below are some recent examples of checkbook journalism, according to the SPJ:
• ABC News paid $200,000 to Casey Anthony, the Florida woman accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee, for exclusive rights to videos and pictures that ran on the network and its website. Earlier ABC had paid for Caylee Anthony's grandparents to stay three nights at a hotel as part of the network's plan to interview them.
• NBC News provided a chartered jet for New Jersey resident David Goldman and his son to fly home from Brazil after a custody battle. NBC got an exclusive interview with Goldman and video footage during that private jet ride.
• CNN paid $10,000 for the rights to an image taken by Jasper Schuringa, the Dutch citizen who overpowered an alleged Christmas Day bomber on a flight from Amsterdam to Detroit. CNN also got an exclusive interview with Schuringa.
Andy Schotz, chairman of SPJ’s ethics committee, offers advice for aspiring journalists: "Don't pay for interviews. Don't give sources gifts of any kind. Don't try to exchange something of value in return for getting a source's comments or information or access to them. Journalists and sources shouldn't have any other relationship other than the one involved in gathering news.”
Based on my research, checkbook journalism is a surprisingly common tactic used by news organizations despite its obvious ethical concerns. Almost even more surprising is the instances where news organizations admonish gossip newspapers and tabloids for the practice of paying for news despite their own participation in the unethical practice.
In the wake of TMZ Sports releasing surveillance video from an Atlantic City hotel elevator of NFL player Ray Rice knocking his then-fiance unconscious, TMZ creator and managing editor Harvey Levin defended his website's practice of chasing stories, even if it means paying for videos and photos.
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| Photo Courtesy of Fox News |
That is not to say that the mainstream media has been strict about not practicing what the SPJ calls unethical behavior, rather they have been doing the same thing for decades. Checkbook journalism has allowed more “watchdogs” to compete for news with the traditional media, but it calls into question the credibility and integrity of those who buy the news.
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