In the 1990’s, the Poynter Institute gave birth to a
beautiful baby, Journalism Code of Ethics. Over time, these ethics have grown
and been shaped by time and events, but essentially stuck to its core. Yet,
there comes a time in every young adolescent’s life when they begin to
experience changes that transform them. This comes in the form of technology for
the blooming code of ethics. Like hormones in the human body, technology has
infused itself into media and its ethics, creating some bumps along the road,
general frustration, but overall maturity.
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| A visual representation of the change in ethics, demonstrated by Taylor Swift. ("You Belong With Me"- Taylor Swift video) |
Everyone has that one geeky friend in middle school who all
of the sudden became the bees’ knees in high school, but deep down they are
still the same ol’ person to you. Well, journalism ethics follow the same
format. It’s first important to analyze the old, pre-technology, core
journalism ethics.
The Old Journalism
Ethics
The first core value to journalism ethics is to “seek truth
and report it fully”. This includes constantly informing yourself, the
reporter, so that you can inform your audience to the best of your knowledge.
This also meant being honest and fair, giving a voice to the voiceless, and
holding the powerful accountable. The second core value to the old journalism ethics
was to act independently. Meaning, guard the role of a free press, seek varying
perspectives without becoming biased, and
recognize your individual responsibility as well as ways others can help. And
the third core value to journalism ethics was to minimize harm to sources and those affected by the story.
The New Journalism
Ethics
The whirlwind of technology and social media has certainly
changed the basic ethics of journalism, but some things remain the same. The
new code of ethics still holds truth to be the most fundamental function of journalism
and simply add asks that journalists be accountable themselves. The second core
value to the new journalism ethics is transparency and the third is to engage
community as an end, rather than as a means.
We must first define transparency and community engagement
to even begin assessing why transparency replaced independence and why community
trumps potential harm. Transparency means being clear, explaining your sources and reporting, and owning up to your mistakes along with quickly fixing them. This gives your audience a reason to believe you and trust you as a reporter.
Community engagement in the journalistic sense means working with the community, understanding their needs, encouraging people to inform themselves, and minimizing harm.
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| People's trust in different media outlets demonstrates the growing popularity of digital media. (American Press Institute) |
The Transformation and Explanation
The role of independence in journalism ethics died due to
the advertisement-based economic state and new media channels which give the
audience the opportunity to question things or choose their news from closer
sources. This is evident in the fact that “a majority of U.S. adults-62%- get news on social media,” according to a study conducted by the Pew Research
Center. These new factors
have made the idea of transparency more necessary because, no matter the media
channel or advertisement backbone, journalists need to be clear with their
viewers. Community engagement as a goal has replaced potential harm because the
idea of community already encompasses protection. Community as a goal is evident
in ‘likes’ and ‘shares’ but is deeper than a click of the button, rather it is
a sign of being part of the culture.
Just like a growing teen, there is no way to be fully mature
without staying true to the basics of you. It is better to simply add pieces of
the new, more improved you. In that sense, I recommend the same for the
Journalism Code of Ethics. The original ideals of truth seeking, independence,
minimizing harm, should not be erased entirely by newer ideals. Instead,
transparency and community engagement as the end, not the means, should work
with the original Code of Ethics.
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