Journalism Ethics and How it Impacts Public Trust

Nolan Cramer
nc948418@ohio.edu

It is no secret that trust in "the media," has been dropping in recent years. Many people see it in their everyday lives, they go on social media and view posts that accuse outlets of promoting its own agenda or being biased against a specific political party. This leads to widespread mistrust of the journalists and outlets that are supposed to be trustworthy sources of information, responsible for keeping a watchful eye and often referred to as the "fourth estate."

The graph below from a 2019 Gallop poll shows how Americans' trust in mass media has been following a downward trend, not only in recent years, but for decades. In 2016, trust in mass media fell to the lowest percentage on record, when only 32% of those polled said they had a "great deal/fair amount" of confidence in the media.

Megan Brenan/Gallop, Inc.

This data presents a very challenging question for all journalists, "how do we convey to the public (not just our audience) that the content we produce is reliable and accurate?" There is no easy solution to this dilemma. One of the reasons for finding a solution is so daunting, is because of polarization in where people get their news from.

A study published by the Pew Research Center in early-2020 illustrated how political party affiliation goes hand-in-hand with which media outlets people consume. The study highlighted the differences in the audiences of media outlets. For example, 26% of the participants who identified themselves as Democrat/lean Democrat said they get their political news from The Washington Post, in comparison to only 8% of those considered Republican/lean Republican. The study concluded that people usually refer to outlets that align with their political beliefs and biases.

This polarization is why it is difficult for media outlets such as The Washington Post to answer the question posed earlier. It needs to figure out a way to demonstrate to the public that their content is trustworthy, accurate and neutral. Organizations such as Ad Fontes Media and "The Media Bias Chart," already list The Washington Post among the most accurate and neutral media outlets. It must now find a way to demonstrate its accuracy and reliability to the general public. This is where journalism ethics come to play.

Both individual journalists and media outlets have to make challenging decisions everyday on what to cover and how to cover certain stories. Often, these decision are not black-and-white but fall in a grey area. Journalists face these ethical questions on a daily basis, and in many cases it can be difficult for their audience to understand the logic behind certain decisions.

One way to help audiences understand why certain media outlets publish (or don't publish) certain stories or choose to cover specific events over others, is by setting a code of ethics. This is simply a list of guidelines a media outlet and their journalists follow to ensure its reporting is honest, accurate and has a neutral bias.

Steven Knowlton and Bill Reader in Moral Reasoning for Journalists, write journalists need to, "join in thoughtful discussion concerning what newspeople do, how they do it, and why."

Going back to the example of the Washington Post, it publishes an ethics policy on its website explaining how it makes certain ethical decisions. This is a good step in showing the public how it holds their journalists and content to the highest of standards. It explains the "why" that Knowlton and Reader are referring to.

Providing transparency about why certain ethical decisions are made and providing a list of ethics encourages and helps reassure public trust in an outlet.

Ethics and Journalism Today

 Julia Black

Juliablackjack@gmail.com

Over the past few years, there has been ongoing talk about how news outlets or "the media" are not to be trusted anymore because some journalists have been losing touch of their ethical roles of journalism. This is a very broad idea. To understand it slightly better, there are different areas one could visit to understand the entirety of the topic of Ethics in Journalism.

 

In Moral Reasoning for Journalists, authors Bill Reader and Steven Knowlton touched upon two different areas -- if we are diving deep into the whole concept of Ethics and its use -- which could explain why there is this idea of news outlets lacking credibility.

 

Reader and Knowlton mentions about how politics has had a major role in this tendency of not trusting the media and news outlets. If we think about the current POTUS and these past four years of him in the White House, one would need only to visit his Twitter account to find themselves presented with a very vocal overflow of hate towards the media.

The more articles showing the president in any negative way only fuel to more debate and anger from his part, constantly contradicting them but both mutually giving the other more platform. However, Trump has a whole team of people who make his image look good no matter what and his constant vocal hate toward news and the media keep feeding or selling this idea that one shouldn't trust the news.

The other area worth investigating is how new media, tabloids, digital media, etc. creates and share articles or specific information for the purpose of getting more recognition, money, and public attention overall. Here the concept of Good vs Bad or Right vs Wrong is at play.

In a New York Times article that talks about the new phenomena of "anti-maskers", author Charlie Warzel interviews Harvard doctor Ranu Dhillon about how the approach should be toward anti-mask people who fully believe that their concept of  "good" or "right" -- in this case: if masks should be worn/do they work -- is the only correct answer because they are fed all these polluted media articles.

Anti-vaccine supporters at California rally to reopen state. 

David McNew/Getty Images

Doctor Ranu Dhillon states "It's absolutely one way or absolutely the other way, when it should be shades of gray" when describing the problem to be due to a "lack of nuance" (2020). In other words, the need for ethics to take place is important when there are so many people fully taking in tabloid articles announcing masks don't need to be worn or advice from the President himself saying that chlorine could be digested to kill the virus.

This is where the Code of Ethics comes in. Journalists have to stick to our basic rule of reporting the truth to inform the public. Especially now. The world has been trying to recover from COVID-19 and with so much uncertainty all around the planet, our focus should be to get informed accurately and inform the public what they need to know during these complicated times without the distraction and wasted time some news networks are providing the public with unethical pieces of articles with information gathered from unreliable sources.

To emphasize, it is times like these we are currently living, when listening and trusting our news outlets and also not polluting the public with unreliable information is most important.

Ethics: A Focal Point of Journalism

Jack Demmler

jd050918@ohio.edu

Everyday people are tasked with making decisions. From getting out of bed in the morning to deciding not to steal from a store, people make decisions that create a ripple effect. More often than not, every decision is made with a particular reason. Some reasons are as simple as "because it is the law," while others contain deeper, moral implications. Moral reasoning is extensively studied in a philosophical field called "ethics."

Ethics is more than a question of good or bad. Ethics takes into account the context of each decision as well as the morals behind each decision. Some important areas of ethics include teleology, deontology, utilitarianism, and egoism. Teleology answers the question "What decision produces the most good ?" In contrast, deontology focuses on rules and answers the question "What do the rules say I should do?" Utilitarianism is similar to teleology in that it answers "What decision produces the most good for the most people?" Ethical egoism focuses on the individual and answers "What will produce the greatest good for me?" Ethics is an important aspect and is placed at the center of every journalist organization.

It has become increasingly common to see the public attack "the media" and journalists. Attacking the media has become more prevalent in today's world. The most notable place we see an attack on the media is through politics. For example, President Trump has used the term "fake news" as a way to dismiss and discredit journalists and news organizations. In a time where the world is divided (notably through politics), being unbiased becomes even more crucial for journalists. The sharing of one's bias often times leads to an attack on the media.  

An explanation to why the media presents bias may be the race for ratings. It seems media organizations are willing to sacrifice ethics in order to bring in more viewers and obtain higher ratings. One way this is done is by presenting an opinion that may resonate with a larger population. Many critics look at journalists who express their opinions on news channels to support their critique on the media. 

However according to a UNESCO article titled "Ethical Journalism: Back in the News," Aidan White states that, "The core values of ethical journalism are more important than ever."  At the heart of every journalism organization is a set of ethics that lead journalists in their duty to report. The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), a United States journalists' organization, provides a list of ethics all journalism organizations are encouraged to follow. The code of ethics state journalists should seek truth and report it, minimize harm, act independently, and be accountable and transparent.

 

Picture source: https://spjashford.org/spj-code-of-ethics/

The SPJ code of ethics present the most important job of any journalist: to inform the public by presenting accurate and unbiased information. 

Why is it important to be an Ethical Journalist?

 

Maddy Doyle 

madisonkdoyle@gmail.com

One huge part of living in the 21st Century is the constant stream of media. Whether it is something you like or hate, we are always consuming new information. Even if you don't think that you are consuming information, you are. You do not have to be actively watching the news or reading the paper to be consuming news. News outlets are moving to social media outlets to put their content out to the world. With the constant stream of news, how do we know what is actually the truth? Then it is up to the journalist or the news outlet to have strong enough ethics to put out truthful information. The media carries such a heavyweight to deliver information. It is more important than ever that the information is correct. People are questioning more than ever, whether the information is accurate?

According to Pew Research Center, data was collected on how people view the media. Americans are divided on the outlets they trust or do not trust. Pew chose a variety of outlets, 30 different ones to be exact. There was distrust from at least one person for each of the outlets. There has recently been an increase in the distrust in outlets. People were split into groups based on their political affiliation. For Republicans, the biggest increase in distrust has been with The New York Times and The Washington Post. For Democrats, there has been less of an increase in the distrust. People are going to not trust different sources even if they say one thing they don't agree with. This research was done to see people's feelings on the media. This data is a little bit skewed due to the fact that the people were broken up into groups based on their political beliefs. 

 

  Picture source: https://stevebuttry.wordpress.com/2015/09/25/ona-project-provides-helpful-detailed-ethics-advice/

 

 

 

 

 

There are different reasons for people to believe the content they are consuming. From another source, The American Press Institue dove into the reasons people trust or do not trust the media. The main reason for people to trust news sources is because of the accuracy that they have. The public is also likely to trust a source if they have developing and critical information on the story. Without people having trust in a source there is no way that they have a "relationship" with it. If people trust a source they will keep going back for more information and their daily content.

Other aspects that go into how much trust a person has are the person's age and race. Younger people are more likely to trust a source if their digital content is strong. While older adults may not be as concerned with the digital presence of a source. If they do not have digital content it wouldn't be a reason for them to not trust the source. African Americans and Hispanics are more likely to care about the race of the person reporting the news. It is quite important for them to see people from their own community reporting. 

The public simply wants news that they can rely on. There are so many other factors that go into whether or not people trust the media. It is necessary that we stop making people question the news and the information that they are taking in. Through research like the kind above we can find how to restore faith in the media to people. If people everywhere are receiving the same information, people will begin to feel better about the news.

Journalism Ethics: The Unspoken Contract between the Media and the Audience

Shel Burton 

shelbyakai@gmail.com

There's an unspoken contract between the news and the people who consume it. The news provides a necessary public service, informs people of natural disasters, health crises, weather, important political events and movements, and so on. As a result, media consumers can appropriately vote, plan their day, support important causes, and generally know what's going on as informed citizens. 

As much as the stress of daily news weighs on a person, staying informed ultimately serves a greater good. Making them a better neighbor, more empathetic, and more open-minded, according to Maggie Rugolo from Buchanan Public Relations. Wanting to be better for ourselves and humankind is something that is taught and is ingrained in most people's actions. The news informs a decision, the decision is made, and, hopefully, society profits from it. 

However, the people have the power to change the laws or, in this case, the ethics of journalism when they feel it isn't serving their interests. Similarly, journalists have built their ethics around serving people and doing the most good while balancing the need for information, according to the Society of Professional Journalism Code of Ethics. This contract is only metaphorical and built on the basis of American democracy. 

But what happens when this contract breaks down? 

Well, you're watching it happen right now. 

                                                                  Photo credits: Alamy

Trust in the media is dismally low across the board. "The media," a name which has had negative connotations for decades, stirs up a lot of feelings from journalists, politicians, and the everyday audience. Whether it's perceived greediness, lack of efficacy, bias, or an overall sense of corruption, there's an outcry demanding better. Audiences are asking for transparency from their news outlets. However, "better" and "transparency," while clear on paper or in a tweet, becomes less clear in real life.

 As news media changes, creating niches for every kind of audience, the contract that was once a certainty between the people and the press, becomes a wild frontier. TV news competes with online news, late-night talk shows are mistaken for news rather than entertainment, there are conservative news outlets for conservatives and liberal news outlets for liberals. All of them share the goal of informing people, however, the rules have changed to stay afloat in this have-it-your-way world. 

Unfortunately, journalists are at the crux of this issue as servants of the people and the creators of news content. That's not to say all of the blame should be placed on the consumer, but the divide does more to destroy the contract than heal it. 

It's a difficult situation that includes more details than this post could cover. To build trust journalists, editors, and their higher-ups have to be more transparent about their information, who they're biased towards, and why. The audience also has to believe that their news is telling them the truth. It's a contract, one that news outlets and the audiences desperately need to abide by. 

How to remain ethical today?

 Joe Collins

joec3754@gmail.com

             

Ever since the Pentagon Paper were released in the early 1970s, journalists have been very concerned with their ethics and making sure that everything that they publish is extensively researched, has correct sources and is free of any opinion. There is no bigger time for this practice than today. Ever since the "fake news" term started getting more and more common, a phrase President Donald Trump has given more traction since he used the phrase a lot throughout his presidential campaign and his time in office. Ethics are the common values that guide reporters. Every journalist wants to remain as ethical as possible because remaining ethical really dictates whether you will keep a position inside of the media and not lose all credibility you spent the majority of your adulthood building. So what are ways to remain ethical and what should you avoid? Allow me to inform you.

   

       Photo credits: Society of Professional Journalists

The Society of Professional Journalists gives us 5 reasons why we need ethics in journalism and I'll explain each one in detail. First, information. The news is one of the most important aspects of a functioning society. After all, freedom of the press is in the First Amendment of the Constitution. So the need to inform society is the utmost importance for journalists and to do it in the proper order and presenting the absolute truth is our top priority as journalists. 

   

Second, there is accountability. We need to keep those we write about in check. For example, when we write about the POTUS, we want to report on what he's doing and making sure that in no way he is abusing his power. The tricky thing about that is, that when we write something false or fabricated, it is immediately turned against us and now we are the ones being held accountable for our mistakes.

   

Third, empowerment. To explain this I'll give you an example. When the video of George Floyd being arrested in late May was circulated and it showed the officer kneeling on his neck for 8 minutes and 46 seconds, various news centers later reported that he was killed during that time. That video being posted, gave power to the people to come together and protest for Black lives and against police brutality and for the first time ever, there was a protest in all 50 states across this nation. All because of one video being posted.

   

Next, there is comfort. An example of this would be when Kobe Bryant, Gigi Bryant and 7 others were killed in a helicopter crash in January of this year. While it may have not been the best reporting, looking at TMZ, numerous people across the worlds were scavenging through their news sources trying to find what happened, or who was onboard? Was the pilot drunk? How many people died? The news was able to give that information, while simultaneously trying to provide comfort to those devastated by the news. 

   

Finally, democracy. This one is a little trickier because there are many news sources that are biased one-way so it's kind of hard to find. news source if you are an unbiased voter. Fox is for conservatives, CNN is for liberals. Either way, having these stations is a good thing because you know you have a source of information that can help you learn more about the candidates and find out if you agree with what their stances on certain issues are. 

  

Now we come to the other side of the issue, things to avoid to remain ethical. There are numerous ways a reporter can be unethical, but I'm here to talk about some of the major examples. One of the biggest unethical things we can do as journalists is to not print the truth. If we lie or fabricate about a topic, then we immediately lose all credibility and really are ill-informed. We as journalists spend years and years and years building up our credibility, practicing citing sources, interviewing people so that we'd never come to a situation where we'd print something that is incorrect. So when it happens, that journalist probably won't write a story again. 

   

Another is using an incorrect photo. This one bugs a lot of people because it can throw off the reader, especially if it is at the beginning of the story. For example, if you read a sports article and the picture is of LeBron James, but the article is actually about Kawhi Leonard, it throws off the entire story and the credibility is lost because it might imply that the writer doesn't know who Leonard is and ruins the story. 

   

 

 

Now we come to the most well-known unethical topic: Being Biased. As journalists, we are expected to be unbiased in our writing. The only times you see biased journalism is either in editorials or if they're a columnist, which is a little different than a journalist. Tucker Carlson is a columnist for example. In anything other than those topics that I've mentioned, we have to be unbiased in our reporting, otherwise we're just a deluxe version of someone on Twitter.

Ethics, in a world that has seemed to forgot its meaning

 Max Brunke

maxbrunke77@gmail.com

    

When one looks at the modern world, what is the first thing they see? Prosperity. Large, tall buildings that reach the clouds. Farmlands that stretch as far as the eye can see. People moving, interacting, spending, even ruling. However, just like some old tale, a book isn't always like it's cover. When one looks deeper into our society, they may find corruption, racism, sexism, homophobia, and the list goes on. All these people, all of these different minds and personalities, it proves that there was bound to be some bad. Yet, many seem to point fingers at the media for facilitating this behavior. 

 

The root of this issue lies within politics, with most media aligning their content based on party affiliation. One side says something is racist so the other side says it's not a big deal nor racist, so that makes the others angry and the endless cycle of vengeance rages on. The media isn't innocent though, don't get the wrong idea. Some extremist media is the reason many people think the way they do. But most underestimate other's abilities to think for themselves, at least this is what I believe in my own personal research (Scrolling through Twitter fights between real people of different beliefs).

Political bias plagues our world. The general population feel compelled to choose a side because of the political party system George Washington once warned us about. In wake of this, our media has underlying corruption, most of the time to benefit a certain political agenda. To confirm my point, I pulled two articles from popular news sources about recent events that occurred in Kenosha, Wisconsin where a 17 year-old named Kyle Rittenhouse shot and killed two people. The only difference between the two is that both are viewed as extreme right, or extreme left bias.   

 

The first article was published by CNN on Aug. 31, 2020. The headline reads, "Trump refuses to denounce violent actions by right-wing agitators". Left-leaning news have a tendency to attack President Trump, and is often seen as condemable by right-wing voters and drives the divide even further apart. I believe that this schism is what destroyed the fourth estate, and continues to destroy it to this day through feeding more and more people the idea of media distrust. The second article comes from FOX News, published on Aug. 27, 2020. The headline reads, "Suspected teen gunman Kyle Rittenhouse spotted cleaning Kenosha graffiti before shooting". To left-wing viewers, this article headline looks like FOX News trying to justify this killer as the good guy. 

Picture sources: FOX News and CNN

   
 My main takeaway from all of this? Ethics in political journalism have been all but thrown out the window. There are very few completely unbiased news sources for politics in America, due to the pressure from outside the tank, and a couple of toxic sharks breaking the operation from the inside. Media outlets lost sight of reporting the news somewhere along the way, and if I had my complete guess (emphasis on the no-evidence-whatsoever factor) I would say that there may be some political figureheads pulling strings behind the scenes. Either way, when you stoop so low to call corruption, you can confirm that ethics at the very least, are long gone.

The Importance of Ethical Journalism

 Emilee Caudill

ec217717@ohio.edu

Journalism in today's society is less about what is being reported and more about whether or not to trust those reporting it. There are many reasons for the lack of faith in the media and it is important that both journalists and consumers of news find a way to improve this distrust.

Photo source: ethicsinjournalismblog.wordpress.com

 

Reasons for Distrust

Although it is hard to picture now, the media didn't always face such distrust. The American people often questioned journalism ethics, but there wasn't a large shared hated for the media like there is today.

Media distrust became more prevalent after the Watergate scandal and the lies told by the Nixon administration. After years of lies, people started to question the media they were consuming and the sources it was coming from.

A big issue now is the contrast in reporting between left leaning and right leaning news sources. In a  Gallup news report it says, "...trust in U.S. local media declines for people who perceive a large gap between their political ideology and the perceived ideology of local news organizations." Basically, Americans like consuming news that aligns with their beliefs and biases.

Big media corporations have found ways to thrive off of the political polarization that is facing our country by creating a war amongst themselves. News is being produced for competition and the winner is the news source with the most shock value.

Another issue that plagues the media today is the understandable distrust from people of color. The gap between how the media covers white people versus every other race is painfully obvious.

In a compelling New York Times article it says, "It is hard to trust an institution that ignores you unless you are perceived as causing a problem...". It is easy to see the difference in media coverage for a person of color versus a white person. When a white child goes missing the whole world is alerted, but many children of different races disappear all the time without any media coverage.

  

How can we Improve?

Although not all media distrust is warranted, some is. It will take both journalists and news consumers to improve the way our country views the media.

Journalists have to be sure they are following a code of ethics. This will prevent personal views from outweighing the facts. It is also important for journalists to learn how to report on different races to improve the way people of color are portrayed. If journalists are going to claim to be fair and ethical, then they need to stick to their word.

Media consumers also need to hold themselves accountable for the information they consume and share. Being aware of biases and conscious about where the news comes from can help consumers be better informed. Checking to see what is in the code of ethics for each news source can help rule out the untrustworthy.

Be Better

It is up to society as a whole to improve the way the media is viewed today, but having ethical journalists and educated consumers is a great start.

Ethical Decision Making and Its Importance in Journalism

 Jorja Butt

jorjabutt14@gmail.com

Journalism has been under fire in recent years as readers have begun to lose trust in the professionals who report the news. The media was once considered the "watchdog" of society as they created a public forum, kept public officials honest, and provided necessary knowledge to the public, but now it is the one under close investigation. As the public's trust in the media continues to decline, journalists must find a way to mend the broken relationship with their readers. Publishing a code of ethics is the start to allowing readers an insight into what personal decisions a journalist makes while reporting. 

News outlets encourage their readers to understand the ethical decision making process that they use by publishing their own set of ethical codes they desire their professionals to follow. While each news outlet may have a slightly different set of ethical codes, all provide similar expectations. The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) state in their code of ethics that they expect their journalists to: seek the truth and report it, minimize harm, act independently, and be accountable and transparent. These qualities are required for journalists as it would build trust between them and the reader.

When the word "ethics" is brought up in conversation, it has a connotation in most minds to mean deciding between good and bad. However, it has less to do with good and bad and more to do with deep reasoning and rationality. In a chapter of Moral Reasoning for Journalists it is stated that an element of ethics is that it, "requires a moral ranking of the available alternatives..." Journalists are faced with these decisions every day. The question of reporting false information for money or out of political bias is what makes some journalism unethical. This is what the future journalists are learning to avoid. It is the media's job as the watchdog to provide the public with the truth and fair reporting. 

Anybody has the ability to post information that may not be factual and it is up to individual journalists to distinguish themselves through ethical reasoning while reporting. The future of journalism is up to the professionals as they navigate a way to regain the trust that they've lost due to unethical reporting. Ethical decision making has never been so important as the future of the media depends on making readers more confident in the stories they are consuming.

Picture source:  https://ethicaljournalismnetwork.org/resources/publications/saving-the-news/hate-speech-arab-media

Ethical Thinking: Why Should We Trust Journalist

Liam Cunningham 

lc218118@ohio.edu 

Today journalists are troubled with the issue of professional ethics. Journalism is at rock bottom when it comes to trust among its readers. Ethics in Journalism is important, and every journalist should consider this in every story. The issue of ethical thinking in the journalism field is often omitted and not paid close attention too. According to the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics, journalists should be accountable, act independently, and minimize harm. 

When it comes down to accountability, journalist should take responsibility for there work. They should be explaining one's choice to the media. Being trustworthy, also plays a big factor when it comes down to being accountable. Trust is important in all levels of management within society. Trust in the business field, especially public relations is the main pillar of relationships with employees and customers. Trust is gained overtime by recognizing mistakes and correcting them expeditiously. 

Acting independently meaning thinking objectively while being ethical, is important. Ethics revolve around virtue, meaning differentiating between what is right and what is wrong. Taking the same steps, and following the same route as someone's opinion can lead to determining ethical standards of someone else. Avoiding conflicts of interest also leads to good ethical thinking. 

Lastly, minimizing harm plays a role when it comes down to being ethical. Understanding both sides of the totem pole on a situation leads to minimizing harm. Showing compassion for those whom may be affected by a certain news story. Another good way that we see harm being minimized is by understanding situations in the cultural aspect. 

Picture Source: https://ajr.org/2014/04/09/new-code-spj-struggles-define-rules-online-journalism/

Money plays a major factor in today's time and a lot of work is produced upon wealth. This leads to many problems within ethical writing. It allows organizations to be bias, lie, and present inaccurate information just to boost their revenue. This is where trust between a journalist and its audience needs to be in place. 

In today's settings, technology gives anyone the opportunity to create news and share it despite how accurate the information is.  So how should we trust journalist who use ethical thinking in there field of study? In the article published by Missoulian, called Journalism 101:Ethics Essential To Maintaining Trust journalist seek and report the truth of everything. Why do they do this? They do this to create/maintain credibility among there audiences. There roles as journalist is to gather and present honest information to the people that are listening.

Topics hindering diversity in the newsroom

 Fallon Howard

fallon.j.howard13@gmail.com

 

What does ethics mean to you? As a journalist,  it is your job to report what is accurate but also what is morally right. It also has to do with the standards of behavior that a company or people see as acceptable. When you set standards for yourself and follow them, people view you as trustworthy and creditable. For example, there is a list of codes of ethics such as integrity, loyalty, having respect for others, and taking accountability. 

Take a look around you, does everyone look like you. I continuously remind myself that I don't see as many people that look like me being that I attend a Predominately White Institution (PWI). However, your work environment may not reflect what you are used to. Society has normalized being comfortable to the point that the only experience they have is what they already know or how they approach certain situations.  This idea displayed in this article, Intellectual Diversity is the Real Goal, mentions, "Is there a culture of the newsroom?" Television journalist Charles Gibson asked during a forum held in the late 1990s. "Are you challenging each other, are you pushing each other?" This quote reflects my idea that you have to learn to adapt to change and think outside the box. It's essential to have diversity in the workplace because of the various viewpoints and experiences that help mold and shape each individual. Having a work environment where everything is the same can create conflicts as well as not reaching your full potential.

 

Picture source: unknown

 

You choose what to believe and what not to believe. However, does the media give you everything you need, or does it hinder information that may be uncomfortable but needs to be said? This happens all the time where media platforms will only choose to scratch the surface, instead of being honest and recognizing that these topics are real-life scenarios.  A lot of times, when you watch the news, there are sensitive topics that are targeted to a specific demographic. However, topics that involve white privilege are usually seen as "more important" than events that affect African Americans, whether it's a positive or negative aspect.  What is disappointing is the way media portrays different people in different lights, although it's the same situation. For example, for someone who is caucasian, the headline for school shooters would include "troubled kid" vs. an African American would be labeled either as "thug" or "typical behavior."  

This idea displayed in this editorial, The Free Press Needs You, mentions, "These attacks on the press are particularly threatening to journalists in nations with a less secure rule of law and to similar and to smaller publications in the United States, already buffeted by the industry's economic crisis. And yet the journalists at those papers continue to do the hard work of asking questions and telling the stories you otherwise wouldn't hear". This quote perfectly captures what I mean by how media can take anything and spin it in a different light, or throwing topics under the rug that should be discussed. This affects viewers who watch your platform.

Journalists and Professional Ethics

Larissa Beriswill

lb657516@ohio.edu

In recent years, the credibility of various news outlets in the United States has been questioned. The journalists and reporters working for these news outlets have also been linked to the skepticism of the public. Now more than ever, it's crucial for journalists to take professional ethics serious and apply those ethics to every piece of work that is published. Stated in Moral Reasoning for Journalists, ethics codes often change which is indicative of the inherent problem with ethics codes. "They should not be considered anything more than contemporary guides for beginning the process of moral reasoning."

Source: https://accountingzone.weebly.com/ethics-in-finanacial-reporting.html

In today's society, there is no knowing which sources and stories to trust. Not only are media outlets being bashed by people on talk shows and on the internet, but reporters are now losing their credibility based on the outlets they work for. Professional ethics in journalism matters more now than it ever has, based on the current events and the state of the media. 

Journalists and journalism students across the nation are taught to abide by the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics. Stated in the preamble of said code of ethics, "Members of the Society of Professional Journalists believe that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy. Ethical journalism strives to ensure the free exchange of information that is accurate, fair and thorough. An ethical journalist acts with integrity."

Followed by the preamble are the four principles of the foundation of ethical journalism: seek truth and report it, minimize harm, act independently and be accountable and transparent. If nothing else, these principles certainly sum up what professional ethics in a journalist should be. A trustworthy reporter works under these principles in every aspect of their career. When a journalists follows these principles, how can anyone say that the media is responsible for all of society's ills? 

Many critics have concerns that mainstream journalism isn't what it used to be, and the only concern of reporters are money, page views and circulation. While those concerns are legitimate and question the ethics of a journalist, there is little to say when it comes to proof. A good journalist responds to these criticisms in a professional way while looking at the concerns from each angle. 

Professional ethics matter in every aspect of a journalists' career. Whether it be a story, responding to a critic or simply reposting things on their social media accounts. Additionally, the concept of "fake news" has certainly made professional ethics that much more important for mainstream media reporters. Students studying journalism today are the journalists and reporters of the future, we must take the professional ethics seriously.

 

Digital Media Ethics

Jena Catalano

jenacatalano@gmail.com

As the Moral Reasoning for Journalists states, we need a communication system that can inform the public, investigate government, challenge orthodoxy, and facilitate debate. Steven Knowlton and Bill Reader explain that journalism is more like a traditional craft; however, the responsibility and ethical duties we are receiving today seem to be failing our society. For this reason alone, journalists should be more concerned with their moral ethics rather than just following the traditional rules. The SPJ Code of Ethics is present for this exact reason. The SPJ Code of Ethics is a statement of abiding principles, supported by explanations and position papers that address changing journalistic practices. It is a guide that allows a journalist to take responsibility and have moral regard. However, some journalists can lose touch with these guidelines, and we have been noticing this through the media. 

 

                                                                        

                                                     Picture source: The Dallas Morning News 

    The Moral Reasoning for Journalists states that ethics and telling the truth allow society to function, and today more than ever, we need to have trust in our news sources. We have a global pandemic occurring, the Earth is suffering from fires and tropical storms, and we are in the middle of an enormous presidential election. However, we are still seeing journalists and reporters lose touch with their moral media ethics, and somehow as a society, we are allowing it on our digital platforms.

    We can see this distancing through the use of social media. Social media and mainstream news organizations can share on their widespread platform firsthand news and information. The Center for Journalism Ethics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison posted an article explaining the new world of online journalism and digital media ethics. Author Stephen J.A. Ward explains we are moving towards a mixed new media – a news media citizen and professional journalism across many media platforms. This original mixed news media requires new hybrid media ethics – guidelines that apply to amateur and professional no matter what platform they are on. He believes media ethics in our society need to be rethought and reinvented for today's media, not of yesteryear's. 

    The endless cycle of constant news makes the world of 'fake news' even more lethal. This comes as a shock when these trusted journalists have such a massive following. Ryan Guerrero explains many news organizations and media companies encourage reporters to use social media to gather information and create a "brand" for themselves. However, online comments, tweets, or posts can put a reporter in the negative spotlight. He continues to explain that the ethical challenge is to develop social media guidelines that allow reporters to explore the new digital media world while still having limits. How did our news channels forget the code of ethics, and why are they not getting reprimanded for it?

What is Ethical Thinking and why does it matter to journalists?

Kiah Easton

kiaheaston1999@gmail.com

 

Today, journalism is at a low point in terms of trust among its readers. With the popular phrase "the media" being blamed for much of the political climate today, journalists are pressed to improve the link between citizens that seems to have been broken. One thing that creates trust between journalists and their readers is ethical journalism, but what is ethical journalism and what does it really mean to be ethical?

Ethics is the ever-evolving study of what humans believe to be wrong and right. However, what is wrong and right depends on who you are asking and what they are basing it on. This idea is displayed in the article What is Ethics? from the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, where people were asked their definition of ethics. "Ethics has to do with what my feelings tell me is right or wrong," "Ethics has to do with my religious beliefs," "Being ethical is doing what the law requires," " Ethics consists of standards of behavior our society accepts."

When the branch of philosophy began to grow, built on the backs of Greek philosophers, it was heavily based on the use of reason. Although still described as the search for what is good, it wasn't what one might think when hearing the word "good". Ethics was initially a shift in the way people thought. If an answer was discovered through reason, intellect, and knowledge rather than instinct or intuition, it would have been considered ethical.

Picture source: ONA Ethics

As the study of ethics developed it adapted to encompass more. As stated in Moral Reasoning For Journalists, "Ethics ask such questions as what is good? Is it the same for each of us? Is good synonymous with pleasure (as the hedonists believed) or, perhaps, with excellence (as Aristotle argued)? Is it immutable, or does it change from time to time, from place to place, and from person to person?"

An important distinction in ethics, and in journalism is the difference between being prudent and being ethical. Prudence encompasses decisions based on being careful and safe. Prudent decisions follow the rules set forward by society with little to no question. Ethics goes deeper to question what is right and wrong beyond what rules state or what society expects you to do. If your family was desperately in need of food but you had no money is it wrong to steal from a large wealthy grocery store? A prudent answer would most likely be to not steal because the laws society has "agreed on" prohibit that action. An ethical answer would analyze whether or not the rule is good in this situation. The family is starving and may die if the man does not steal the food, the grocery store will take a minimal financial loss. Regardless of what the rules are governing the situation, ethical thinking would most likely deduce that it would be good for the man to steal the food and feed his family because it creates more good than it does bad.

How does this play into the journalistic process? Why should we trust journalists who think ethically more? Because journalists are aggregators of information within society. Their function is to inform and protect the people they serve. Although many journalistic organizations have codes of ethics, journalists also need to be able to think for themselves in order to carry out their duties with ever ones best interests in mind. Whether it be respecting privacy versus exposing corruption or telling the facts in a way that is not misleading, journalists need to be able to think ethically to make the right decisions.

In our current atmosphere, much of content creation is fueled by revenue, which in certain cases has caused sensationalism, lying, and in general unethical journalism. Ethicality is the key to creating trust between journalists and the world and therefore it should be cultivated within more journalists and displayed to the public creating trust and restoring journalist's reputation.

Ethical Thinking And Its Influence On Journalism

Logan Barragan

lb589416@ohio.edu

We look to the media for entertainment, the daily forecast, updates on global pandemics and the latest on the fight for social justice. News outlets carry an incomprehensible level of responsibility to deliver information as quickly and efficiently as possible. One faulty source or offensive headline can be the defining factor for if society considers a journalist's work worthy of reading. More so, if the company they work for is legitimate. 

Critics of journalism are often professors who quite literally make a living picking apart the issues of the media. Also, actual professionals in the industry who admit to there being many issues pertaining to the craft.  The issue of ethical thinking, and its use in journalism today is that it is often overlooked. This can be because of money, meaning that news outlets will succumb to unethical journalism in an effort to achieve good ratings and in turn, build profit. There is also the issue of entertainment and legitimate news being seen as one in the same. This creates the problem for readers and viewers to know what information really is worthwhile to pay attention and consume. 

 

Picture source: http://www.freelunch.co.in/the-curious-case-of-the-spiralling-twins-indian-democracy-and-the-media/

The use of ethics in journalism could be considered by many to be a thing of the past, or perhaps something that has never existed. However, according to a study led by two professors of journalism, Lee Wilkins from the Missouri School of Journalism, and Renita Coleman, from the University of Texas-Austin School of Journalism, it is evident that is not the case. Their article, Ethical Journalism Is Not an Oxymoron,  used the Defining Issues Test (DIT) on over 200 journalists with more than 10 years in the field to see if ethical reasoning is in fact an innate part of their job. 

The DIT provides its responders with six ethical scenarios and asks them to make a choice on how they would handle said scenario, and to then explain the reasons for that choice. What they gathered from their research was that the majority of the journalists scored high on the written part of the exam, furthermore they explained why they use ethical thinking in their work. Throughout the duration of the test, they considered their community  and the validity of the sources and subjects involved in the various scenarios. The article concluded that journalists, at their core, are quality ethical thinkers. The fact of the matter is they have to make decisions about how their report is written with the consideration of so many outlying factors. Factors the public has no idea about. 

So how do we as readers and viewers, know if the journalism we are reading is being written with the use of ethical thinking? Relatively well known American newspaper companies, like The New York Times, has a section on their website titled,  Ethical Journalism, A Handbook of Values and Practices For The News and Editorial Departments. This handbook is solely dedicated to the explanation of how they write their stories, and that they do so in the most impartial way possible. 

An operative way for journalists to use ethical thinking in their work is the understanding an implementation of the Utilitarianism theory. According to the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, those who believe in this theory do their best to increase the amount of good things in the world and decrease the amount of bad things, with the intent of creating the most good for the most amount of people. This mind set can be used by journalists when they approach an ethical issue. They solve the issue by deciding what outcome would be the best for the majority of the community. 

As mentioned previously, there are so many unknown factors that go into the development of a news release, and in many cases those factors detract from the intended message. But what we can conclude is that journalists are indeed ethical thinkers who, for the most part, work to bring the most relevant of events and issues to the light for the public to be aware of. 

Conflicts of Interest and Ethics in Public Relations

Lorraine Stone

ls304319@ohio.edu

According to the PRSA Code of Ethics, the values which are the core beliefs that direct behaviors and decision-making processes, come down to advocacy, honesty, expertise, independence, and loyalty. The core principle is the free flow of information which intends to uphold the integrity of relationships with the media, government officials, and the public while assisting in informed decision-making. Trust appears to be at the very center of values in public relations and understandably so.  

Trust is crucial for all levels of management in society, whether it be personal, organizational, or societal. Trust is the primary indicator that can significantly improve so much more than just the financial status of a business or organization, which is why trust is at the center of principles when it comes to Public Relations. This is why a cooperation’s reputation is so essential, trust is built through consistent actions over a period of time, and something as simple as one single conflict of interest, whether perceived or real, carries the potential to undo the integrity of the entire organization.

The best way to diffuse a conflict of interest is prevention, avoiding one from developing in the first place. However, this is not a perfect world, and conflicts of interest are bound to occur from time to time. Some examples of conflicts of interests provided by Media Ethics Resource Library are interference of private and public interests, situations where outside employment may be in conflict with primary occupation, personal interests, such as family, come into play, and occurrences where professionals receive compensation beyond salary for work that is either performed or going to be performed. The reason conflict of interest is so worrisome in Public Relations is because it interferes with a professional's impartiality, which is an essential ethical component in the industry.  

                             https://www.slideshare.net/oreshetn/ethics-in-pr-11310284

In an additional article, Ethics and Responsibility, Virgil Scudder states, “A company’s cultural and ethical standards come from the top-down, not from the bottom up. Employees will almost always behave in the manner that they think management expects from them, and it is foolish for management to pretend otherwise.”  

In other words, it is up to the CEO of the organization to determine the culture of the company and for that to be clearly communicated by Public Relations professionals with employees. Employees are aware of what the company will and will not tolerate, and if there are no consequences for breaking the rules, some employees are going to take advantage of them. 

That is why the culture and expectations are communicated, not only through words but through actions, consistently taken over time. Scudder continues to explain that if management is indeed concerned about the corporation’s reputation and behavior, there are steps Public Relations can utilize in order to assist in producing more ethical atmospheres. Therefore, maintaining an ethical culture within an organization is far from a lost cause, just as long as the organization prioritizes the ethical aspects of the company and is willing to put forth the effort. 

Astroturfing: Is this "normal"?

Ciara Walker
ciaraw74@gmail.com

The air force does it, and so does the tobacco industry. But what is "astroturfing" and how does one know if (or when) he/she is being astroturfed by a faux supporter. Astroturfing is when sponsors of an organization, or even a particular message - mask themselves, but appear to be from people (or groups) that were there from the start. The saddest part is that most of these astroturfing accounts (we like to call them robots on Instagram and Twitter) could have been born moments ago, but appear to have full lives, and a full range of activities (and identities). They even have a wide range of characteristics that you and I would have like an email, an address, and a phone number.

what is astroturfing

In the world we live in today, where being an Instagram influencer is considered "goals", astroturfing is reigning heavily in that realm. Most influencers are targeted to post and campaign for various agendas based on their audiences. For example, fitness guru's are required to post certain content and support various, but they also force them to mask ads and astroturf.  They want the influencers to appear (when they post) as though they aren't sponsored or being paid to post such content, so they have them hide the admissions in their hashtags by using "#SP" to stand for "sponsored post" or "PA" for "paid advertisement". After reading this weeks lesson, I came across an article about an organization that chose to educate their audiences on their views of astroturfing and their view of the ethical dilemmas they have encountered. The talent agency Gushcloud, founded in 2011 in Singapore is Asia's leading influencer agency. They released an article titled "About Astroturfing: Ethics and Values in order to save face. In the blog/article, the agency breaks down their views on why they don't support astroturfing, all while opening our eyes to the various ways in which they do just that.

Asian Instagram Influencer - Gushcloud

Yelp, too! 

When I first learned what the word astroturfing was, I immediately thought of Yelp and the world of reviews. Many sites like Google, and yelp have fake reviews and sponsorships. I remember reading of a bad case of astroturfing gone wrong in NY where the attorney general wanted to highlight how prevalent it was, that he set up a fake yogurt shop, and watched as the "bots" went to work. There should be some sort of guide to detecting astroturfing .