The Weight Journalists Carry

 Jenna Hill

jh875318@ohio.edu

We all know with each profession as well as within life itself, come responsibilities. These responsibilities may be physically written in our contracts or are to be assumed. Without a doubt, these are a challenge at times. Sometimes the weight of these commitments is just too much. 

Source: deposit photos

Decision-making is a common weakness. Growing up many of us have heard the classic phrase "trust your gut", but today I ask if that is all we have to do. 

Now more than ever the world of media is struggling. Journalists are feeling pressure in all areas thus, affecting the quality of work. Chapter 58 in The News Manual describes these pressures. Some of the pressures include: authority within the field, financial pressures, outside perspectives or stigmas, personal beliefs, and of course pressures of abiding by the code of ethics.

This week we have explored the history behind the ethics of journalism as well as the ethical responsibilities we, as journalists, have to face. In the world of media and press, our publishing decisions often affect a large audience. This makes it imperative to follow the ethic codes of journalism.

The Code of Ethics from the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) lists and describes guidelines for the publishing of media. The code consists of four principles surrounding the ideas of being transparent and truthful while, minimizing the negative consequences.

Historically, journalists such as John Milton and John Stuart Mill are known for having different views on ethical decision making. There is a wide-scale between believing in complete freedom of expression such as, publishing a full story, and publishing part of a story to minimize harm.

So again, the reoccurring question is: how do journalists identify the best choice and execute it properly?

As taught in lecture, Sissela Bok's model of ethical decision making advises publishers to start with listening to your gut then seeking advice and evaluating how the decision will affect others.
Large news publications such as the New York Times share their commitment to their readers. The Times shares their duties include "In print and online, we tell our readers the complete, unvarnished truth as best we can learn it. It is our policy to correct our errors, large and small, as soon as we become aware of the error"

There is no easy answer or choice when it comes to the world of journalism. It is the responsibility of journalists to do their best to follow the SPJ code of ethics. We must balance publishing the truth for the benefit of the public while, maintaining a low amount of poor consequences.