The impact of trolling in the journalism profession

 Grace Morris 

Morrisgrace36@gmail.com

gm245917@ohio.edu

In today’s world, the concept of trolling is a common phenomenon that many people will experience at some point during their time on the internet. Traditional trolling is often defined as individuals who leave offensive and hurtful messages intentionally on the internet to receive attention or upset another individual. However, the concept of trolling within the journalism profession has a slightly different meaning. 

According to an article from Columbia Journalism Review, it states that trolling or “source hacking” is a “set of techniques for hiding the sources of problematic information, in order to permit its circulation in mainstream media.” It further states that “source hacking” or trolling is considered to be an indirect method to target journalists by “planting” or spreading false information in places where these professionals and other individuals are likely to see it. 

Image curtsey of Morning Consult

According to the report from Harvard University’s Kennedy School within the Columbia Journalism Review article, it states that these trolls utilize various methods to target journalists within the digital space. These methods consist of viral sloganeering, leak forgery, evidence collages, and keyword squatting. Viral sloganeering consists of “repackaging reactionary talking points for social media and press amplification”; Leak forgery involves “prompting a media spectacle by sharing forged documents”; Evidence collages are “documents made up of information or misinformation from multiple sources so as to make them easily shareable”; Keyword squatting is the “strategic domination of keywords and “sock-puppet” accounts in order to misrepresent the behavior of specific groups or individuals.”

In an article published by Rolling Stone, they describe and list several instances in which trolling occurs on the internet and the impact in the journalism profession. One instance in which they described trolling is the 2016 United States presidential election and Russia’s involvement. The article's research has shown that Russia deliberately utilized social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook to increase support for Trump’s presidential campaign while lowering the voter turnout for Clinton. However, Russia’s goals were not to collude with Trump’s campaign. But instead, create and further widen the divide between the American people to increase distrust in American institutions that represent a “strong” democracy. 

The use of social media platforms by trolls can create a slippery slope for journalists as well as the spread of truthful and accurate information. For journalists to combat internet trolls while maintaining ethical decision-making, they must critically and thoroughly research the information they are reporting on to ensure that the information is truthful and accurate. If journalists do not take the bait from these trolls, the spread of accurate information will outweigh the abundant lies that plague the digital space. 

How to Get Away with Trolling and Fake People

Kaelyn Walther

kw222519@ohio.edu

In today's age, "trolling" is considered a slang term for someone joking around on the internet or poking fun at someone else behind a mask of anonymity. They could be anyone from an angry customer with a grudge, a young person who thinks they are being funny, or just someone with a lot of time on their hands. However, in the world of news and journalism, trolls can be so much more harsh and devastating to people's lives and business' reputations. 

In an article from the Rolling Stone, the aspect of "trolling" has a much more sinister undertone. The article touches on how the Russians are suspected of using social media to infiltrate and sabotage the media. They use uplifting messages and innocent quotes in order to garner mass upticks in patronage to their pages, then publish small fragments of Russian misinformation to those masses of people. These people see these tweets, posts, and updates and it is harder to recognize it as misinformation because it is from an account they presumably trust. In the article, there are examples given of how these "troll" accounts use misinformation to split the media. They use things such as fake polls, fake surveys, and other things of that nature to further push one side or another. For example, one of the accounts posted a false survey saying that 55% of a Christian college would disown their child if they came out as homosexual. This problematic post further pushes the stereotype that all Christians, especially conservative Christians, are homophobic. 

In another article from The New York Times, the rise in digital models and digital influencers has become the new normal. Popular influencers include Lil Miquela who first sky rocketed to fame in 2016. This generated character was a first of its kind, but soon became a popular way for companies to market their brands without having to pay influencers or give away free items. All they have to do is give a general look they want for their "model" and let graphic designers do their work. 

Source: Instagram

In the photo, Lil Miquela is seen as an eerily human-like character. When the character first came to fame, it was difficult to discern whether or not they were an actual person. There are plenty of photos on their Instagram page showing them promoting different products from clothes, to makeup products, to hair care. 

Influencers like Lil Miquela, who are fictional characters, and Bella Hadid, a real life model and influencer have been subject to controversy in recent years due to advertisements and endorsements they made being taken as their own opinions, not something they were most likely paid to say. In an article from AdAge.com, this use of advertisement through influencers was shown to be unethical and misleading because fans of these influencers believed their role models were actually using these products when, in reality, they were being paid to say these to boost sales. Thus, this sprouted the demand for influencers to make advertisements obvious and be upfront about being paid to talk about certain items. 

This new age of advertisements comes with the rise of technology. With more new ways to promote products popping up everyday, it becomes hard to discern what is real and what is not, what is true and what is false, and what is genuine and what is not. With all of these qualities in mind, the reality of the world of influencers is also at stake. If a company can pay computer engineers and graphic designers to create their "perfect model," where do the real life people come in? Are they left in the dust and forced to work a regular 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. like the majority of us? Or will we eventually circle back to the authenticity of a real human promoting a product to other real humans? One thing we can count on for sure is, fake people are taking over the media, and we are letting them.

Journalism and Ethics

Ella Umbarger 

eu594318@ohio.edu 

    Ethics and displaying ethical behavior is very important when it comes to journalism. You need to make sure you hold others and yourself accountable. Many employers look for employees with strong ethics. Having your own personal code of ethics and learning the professional codes of ethics can help.

    
 There are so many professional ethical codes available. The SPJ code of ethics provides a great . Their main principles are Seek Truth and Report It, Minimize Harm, Act Independently, and Be Accountable and Transparent. Under each principle it says what a journalist should do. While working on my case study I found myself referring back to the SPJ code of ethics constantly. 

    The PRSA code of ethics helps provide public relations with a handy guide . Their professional values are advocacy, honesty, expertise, independence, loyalty, and fairness. PRSA also has a PRSA code provisions of conduct The provisions are free flow of information, Competition, Disclosure of Information, Safeguarding Confidences, Conflicts of Interest, and Enhancing the Profession. Each provision goes over the intent, guidelines, and examples of improper conduct under the provision. Using the information PRSA has provided can help you in ethical dilemmas.  

Image by abc.net.au

      We all have our own personal codes of ethics that we can rely on. Whether it is our own moral codes or religion. Before learning professional codes of ethics, I used my own moral code to make decisions.

     When I had to do our case study last week I got an insight into having to make a difficult ethical decision. The case study showed a real-life situation and had me make a decision and explain my thought process of the decision. I also had to identify the stakeholders in the situation and my ethical obligation to each. 

    

    Balancing ethical obligations with what I should do as a journalist was very difficult and it was a learning experience. I wanted to report the truth but I wanted to make sure I was not going against any of my ethical obligations to the stakeholders.

     

    Trust between the public and journalists has always been an issue. There has been a growing lack of trust in recent years. An ethical question that has come up more and more is using consumer data. Advertisers use this data to create advertising campaigns. People now have growing concerns about the privacy of their data. The data is helpful but is that information more important than users' privacy. 

How Company Culture Contributes to Ethical Decision Processes

Kat Willette

kw154717@ohio.edu 

    Every year around this time, when the leaves are changing as the Appalachian air becomes crisp, thousands of soon-to-be college graduates begin the daunting task of career research. Though there are countless features that may attract young professionals to a certain job, one of the most important assets that a company has to offer is its culture.  

    Within the modern professional world, most qualified candidates for any given job are actually more concerned about the culture of the company they are applying for, with the thought that positive company culture leads to better productivity and an overall higher quality of work. According to Refresh Leadership, "86% of Millennials say they would consider taking a pay cut to accept a position at a company that has a mission and values that align with their own" (Price). Surprisingly enough, a majority of young professionals value the culture of a company far more than how much they are payed. 

Photo Source: Landscapeprofessionals.org

    Similarly, according to LinkedIn's Workplace Culture Report, "70% of professionals in the U.S. today would not work at a leading company if it meant they had to tolerate a bad workplace culture" (McQueen). Again, we see that modern professionals refuse to work for companies that do not promote positive, inclusive and diverse culture experiences. This statistic is the main reason that many large firms have had to tighten their company cultures in order to win and retain young talent. According the the same culture report produced by LinkedIn, they believe the key to cultivating a gleaming internal culture is to invest in their employees, maintaining values and creating a culture in which people feel they belong. 

    Though companies have been putting extra care into encouraging positive workplace atmospheres in the recent months and years, there are still some situations in which employees feel the company's values have been breached. An active example of this is the ultra-popular entertainment machine, Netflix. Many of Netflix's employees were upset by the releasing of comedian Dave Chapelle's latest work, "The Closer" on the platform due to its insensitivity toward members of the LGBTQ+ community. After many internal meetings and even public comments from CEO Ted Sarandos, employees decided to host a walk-out, in which any Netflix team member who disagreed with the show or who wanted to show support to those who were hurt by the show excited the Netflix headquarters in Las Angeles. 

       Events such as this one that are aimed to show dissatisfaction with company standards are becoming more popular within the professional realm, and are used as a method to keep ethical values firmly lodged within a company's everyday decision making processes. 

The Demonization of Black Bodies in Media

Emily Baron

eb113717@ohio.edu 

  Image courtesy of Muse by Cilo 

 Image courtesy of Muse by Cilo

Throughout U.S. history, Black people have been criminalized and brutalized by the media time and time again. Racist, white supremacist fear has unjustly stoked the perception of Black bodies as a weapon for centuries. Today, the media still plays a huge role in setting the tone for how we perceive people of color and establishing consequential stereotypes from said media coverage. 

An example of how the criminalization of Black people, specifically Black youth, still runs rampant today is the school-to-prison pipeline. This is an evident trend in U.S. schools where students of color are significantly more prone to being funneled into the U.S. prison system. This happens because police officers, instead of teachers, counselors or principles, are planted in schools so they can “step in” to discipline students. 

Graph courtesy of First Focus (February 2, 2015)

Having a police officer in schools is scary for young children of color, especially following the rise of societal acknowledgement to police brutality against people of color. Police brutality is a reality faced by people of color in this country daily. Especially following George Floyd’s death, more and more parents are discussing racism and police brutality with their children. Having a police officer planted in schools makes children of color feel unsafe and unwelcome. This pipeline is a direct extension of the racist views America planted its roots in at its inception of mass genocide and enslavement.

Journalist Dawn Turner with Nieman Reports explained how these stereotypes seep through the images we present in media coverage of criminal reports, especially in images of people of color. The images selected, “often lack context and depth and feed a perception that skews and even skewers reality.” To have a person of color’s photograph coupled with a caption of the crime they are accused of is not the issue alone; it is the fact that as this imagery emerges and circulates, racist stereotypes will only grow stronger as communities of color are increasingly misrepresented and damaged by the effects. A face paired with an alleged crime alone is not enough background information for readers to gain the full story. Instead, these images cause harm to Black communities. 

Journalist Clark Merrefield with Neiman reports shared how, “Racial and ethnic minorities make up about 40% of the U.S. population.” The media’s job is to be an objective source providing accessible, reliable information to the masses, and to accurately reflect breaking news and information with as little bias as possible. With people of color making up nearly half of our population, it is journalists’ duty to examine if the work they put out is harming people of color with basal, deceiving imagery and descriptions instead of accurate representation.

Monological Thinking: The New Virus Plaguing Society

Emily Baron

eb113717@ohio.edu 

 Image courtesy of Baltimore Sun

     Image courtesy of Baltimore Sun

 

While reading the Columbia Journal Review’s  article, “The Victims of Fake News,” a variety of personal narratives are displayed to explore the damaging effects of false information spreading online. Coverage of David Wheeler’s experience with fake news stuck out in particular as it described how conspiracy theorists are denouncing the Sandy Hook school shooting, and specifically, the death of his son, Benjamin Wheeler. 

Conspiracy theorists, most notably Alex Jones of Infowars, used the unrelated fact that Wheeler and his wife both had previously acted as a profession to support the ridiculous claim that they fabricated their son’s murder. This was then extended to a much larger claim that the entire shooting and massacre of 20 school children had never occurred. “The way this propaganda works is you take something insane and wrap it in a little bit of truth, and then all those people swallow it because it’s wrapped in a little bit of truth,” Wheeler explained. 

The idea of using one insignificant element of a story to fabricate an entire false narrative is related to monological thinking. Wheeler expressed, “It comes back to the question of brain pathology, of monological thinking. It comes back to why they have to feel this way, that they know something that you don’t know, that they feel like they have some power, like they matter in the world.”

Independent scholar Kurtis Hagen states in his article, “Conspiracy Theorists and Monological Belief Systems,” that monological thinking can be reduced to the simple idea of using one point of contention as evidence for another. However, Hagen points out, “Conspiracy theorists are thought to take this normal and unproblematic reasoning process—using one belief as evidence for another—too far. Indeed, allegedly, they take it to the point of self contradiction,” (Hagen 3). Jones and other conspiracy theorists targeting Wheeler and his family certainly fall into this category. 

Belief systems can be characterized as monological or dialogical. Hagen includes in his article, “‘Dialogical belief systems engage in a dialogue with their context, while monological systems speak only to themselves, ignoring their context in all but the shallowest respects’ (Goertzel 1994: 740),” (Hagen 15). Jones and others who were pushing the fallacious claim about the shooting being fake were only relaying the same unrelated pieces of information instead of observing the full context of the situation. Wheeler described how other parents of victims had a variety of jobs other than acting and how these facts were conveniently ignored in every conspiracists’ argument. 

Monological thinking on the internet is dangerous because it is easy for erroneous information to spread like wildfire, poisoning minds into accepting fictitious distortions of reality as truth. The consequences of such misinformation affects real lives, like Wheeler and his wife. Agility PR Solution stated in an article, “Belief in conspiracy theories and fake news has increased to a level that it has become a proper subculture.” Jones and Infowars has a massive outreach and audience, and combined with the endless space for conspiracy-related intercourse on the internet, it is not a stretch to say that a subculture indeed has been established and is continuing to expand. Although dabbling in conspiracies can be a hobby for some, it is important to consider the real-life impacts of perpetuating a narrative with little evidence that is as false as it is damaging. 

Public Relations: Making Ethics a Priority

Bennett Snyder

bs381219@ohio.edu

The theme for this class, pertaining to myself, has been all about learning new things. Obviously, that's what classes are for, but I do not mind elaborating at all. I was a normal, young, inexperienced sports writer before this class. Now, I am learning all about topics that will be crucial in my job search in years to come. I've learned to get both sides of a story, now, I'm learning to see both sides of a newsroom. 

Ethics isn't just a priority for writers; Public Relations departments are still nailed with ethical dilemmas day in and day out as well. Marlene Neill, assistant professor at Baylor University, shares her perspective as one of the top ethics researchers in the United States: "I think it is important to have the courage and just be honest about your concerns". 

Source: jhmgroup.in 

It may sound cliche, but honesty is simply the best policy. Having honest, real, transparent conversations in a newsroom will lead to having the most well-rounded coverage on a topic. Looking back on Marlene Neill, ethics is ranked among the top three qualities in employers when searching for a new employee. Well, not to state the obvious, it's very difficult to be ethical without being honest. 

As in any job we may have in our careers, pressure will come along with it. Situations will pop up where we may feel like our hand is being dealt for us. We might feel pressure to lie from authority figures, be backed into a corner unable to see the truth or struggle with true confidentiality. Regardless of what we may face in our future, the basics of ethics in not just the PR department, but everywhere, is that honesty will always be your best policy. 

One of the best ways, as shared by PRSA, is to hold yourself, and others, accountable for their actions. Being accountable must always start with yourself, especially in public relations. Our job is to, quite literally, deal with the public. Being completely transparent with the public is scary at times, heck, it might even put our jobs on the line. Sometimes it might seem easier to tell a white lie, or simply just to bend the truth, but as ethical public relations workers, that is unacceptable. Finding ways around a situation negates the true reward for facing a challenge. Being able to accept a challenging task, and completing it, is one of the most rewarding feelings in the world. Although public relations is far out of my comfort zone, I now know ethics is the basics behind a successful career in that field. 

       

Ethical Responsibilities of PR Professionals

Claire Schiopota 

cs123719@ohio.edu

Public Relations, known by many as PR, involves an ethical balancing act, which professionals still struggle with in today's media. According to the Public Relations Society of America, or PRSA, PR is the strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics. While the goal of PR is clear, the way it has been accomplished has pushed ethical boundaries. 

The PRSA is the nation's leading professional organization in serving communications to the public; they are often cited for their PRSA Code of Ethics. The codes identify several main ideas including advocacy, honesty, expertise, independence, loyalty and fairness. They also have a code of conduct for their members to follow in order to carry out their work ethically.

While each person who conducts PR work may not be a dedicated member of PRSA, the expectation is that those with the power to use PR, respect the public and behave with similar values in mind. Unfortunately, this is not always the case.

(Graphic courtesy of Ken Jacobs, PRSA)

Under the direction of Rupert Murdoch, the News of the World tabloid was brought to their knees for unethical practices. According to an article titled "Follow the Leader: Ethics and Responsibility," author, Virgil Scudder, said, "employees hacked the phone of a missing 13-year-old year and hampered the police's investigation of her murder." 

While this event occurred in 2011, the point remains clear: those with the power to conduct PR work must be held accountable and act ethically or real people can be severely hurt. Where the real blame lies though is up for debate. Since Murdoch lead the charge, is he fully to blame for the misconduct? Or do these individual PR workers hold just as much, is not more, responsibility for the mistakes made?

In "What Are the Top Ethics Challenges, Skills and Deficiencies Facing Public Relations Professionals?" Dr. Marlene Niell from Baylor University said, "Having that competence and willingness to speak up, especially to people who outrank you. And that can be something that can be quite intimidating, especially early on in your career, is having that courage to raise a concern and ask the questions when something doesn't seem right."

Based off that conclusion, I can understand and see how it may be challenging to speak up and defend ethical standards in the face of a person who has the power to ruin your career and livelihood. Still, I believe PR professionals have an obligation to the public to uphold the truth, and this cannot attained through remaining silent and complicit. 

In an article titled "PRSA Chief Blasts Hope Hicks' Self-Confessed 'White Lies'" from PR News by Seth Anderson, a noteworthy quote is said by PRSA Chairman Anthony D'Angelo: "All members (of PRSA) sign a pledge to 'conduct myself professionally, with truth, accuracy, fairness, and responsibility to the public.' That tenet is essential for the organizations, clients and the public we serve because it protects our most precious asset: trust."

D'Angelo focuses on pointing out members of PRSA here, but I believe this points to the bigger picture and an ethical code all PR professionals should follow. Trust can only thrive in our nation if everyone in PR remembered to practice truth, accuracy, fairness, and responsibility. 

Putting "Relations" in Public Relations

Eric Steere

es581519@ohio.edu

When you think of making an ethical decision, you also think about making the right decision, or a good decision. Ethical decisions are made both because people have truth and honesty in mind, and they are able to set personal thoughts and ideas aside. These thoughts should remain in mind during all decision making processes, especially when dealing with large-scale organizations, like the world of public relations. 

Source: www.mckreview.com

The definition for Public Relations is essentially the internal management of information from an organization or public body to present to the public. The word "internal" is the the specific word for this situation. 

Where ethics in public relations starts is within the company's employees themselves, more specifically how they treat each other and how the ranks communicate. PRSA's article "Follow the Leader: Ethics and Responsibility" states that it is one of the most important roles as a CEO to create and communicate the culture of an organization, done through words and actions. This is in the best effort for the relationships within the company and maintain a healthy productive environment.

PRSA's article also states how to create a more ethical environment, listing steps such as bringing in outside firms to check for ethical practices, or simply promoting the practices of the new organization. These said practices hold people accountable for each other without the potential from corruption. 

These standards are highly valued among many organizations, however many may be surprised with how little it is actually seen in the real world. A post by Ethical Voices featuring Marlene Neill states that ethics is ranked in the top three things employers want to see in PR, but the skill was hard to find in reality. 

Within Neill's study on expectations for workers in public relations, a list was created for the main issues encountered by public relation employees, some of which include transparency, selective truth telling, confidentiality, conflict of interest, etc. All of the items on the top 10, however, list are supposed to be expectations for these workers. What Neill suggests to all workers in the field is reaching out to mentors and each other for guidance. 

This again ties back to the relationships within the company and between the employees; developing these standards for each other can improve the quality of work put out as well as the quality of the actual workspace. Not only do the employees need to hold themselves to these standards, but the employers and higher ups as well. It is as PRSA's article states, that things happen from the top ranks down to the lower ranks.

PR: How to Stay Relevant, for Dummies!

 The world of Public Relations is messy, tumultuous, and difficult to navigate. When I think of Public Relations, I usually think of people helping celebrities get out of the fire of social media or being "cancelled." I also see them as the face of most celebrities since they, like I said earlier, usually are the person who makes the statements if a celebrity is in trouble with the public. 

The problem with Public Relations, based on what I have read, is that it is difficult for PR specialists to remain relevant both in the public eye and in the PR community. The need for PR specialists comes and goes through the necessity of them, but without scandals or national issues there is no reason for them. This is why they have to do everything possible to stay relevant. 

In the article, "Seeking Relevance: PR and media during the COVID-19 pandemic," it talks about how many opportunities arose for publicists to weave their way into the media with a comment here or a comment there. The article also touches on how the pandemic opened up new avenues for publicists to specialize in that they had never heard of or tried before. It also highlights some steps on how to stay relevant and why it matters. Some of the tips included are as follows: Relevance, tools beyond words, thought leadership, leave bread crumbs, be respectful, and to remember there is a next time. These key points are meant to help publicists work well with journalists and vice versa on covering topics. 

A majority of the article also touched on why publicists need journalists just the same as journalists need publicists. Without these two working in tandem, gaps in stories could develop because of a key part of one side of a story being lost or not even being spoken. There are a good amount of topics that publicists and journalists have and will collaborate on as well as be able to help each other network to find other sources. 

These articles have come out recently to bring awareness to the drop of actual journalists and the replacement of publicists and PR representatives. This replacement has caused an alarming uptick in what is deemed "corporate journalism." This term is in reference to PR teams and representatives being the writers of major news stories and effectively dismissing the journalists as the middle men. These publicists are taking their own information and writing pieces that read like a corporate meeting letter, not a story. 

Source: Quartz

This image shows the dramatic decrease in news editors and reporters who would be considered the middle man in journalism with publicists and the news. On the same note, PR staff has had a rapid increase in recent years, and thus beginning the process of removing said middle man all together. 

This new wave of journalism can prove to be problematic because now we will not be getting full, researched stories that can cover multiple topics. Now, we as readers will be treated as consumers because of how the PR staff and the publicist write their articles. 

Finally, another article that highlighted the relevance problem with the convergence from journalists to PR representatives is the article from PRNews, "PRSA Chief Blasts Hope Hicks' Self-Confessed White Lies." This article touches on how the need for relevance and the need for attention from news organizations can lead to the use of lies and manipulation in order to garner media attention. In the article, it even states, "... lying to the media, is typically referred to as PR."

This statement is a great representation of how media works today as well. This also brings into question whether or not the wave of corporate journalism could be detrimental to the trust in media in general. If publicists and PR representatives have been lying or manipulating their ways into relevance, what is going to stop them from publishing something completely false based on the sheer fact that someone said it was true. Anyone can state a "fact" and if a PR staff writing takes it at face value, that could lead to lawsuits, bad reputations, or worse.

Ethical Responsibilities in PR

Tess Woodyard

tw330817@ohio.edu

When you think of public relations, you expect them to hold a set of ethical values. Many PR professionals face challenges within these ethical responsibilities which can cause them to be portrayed in a different light.

Source: playbookpublicrelations.com

According to Ethical Voices, they made a top ten list of the main issues employers and PR professionals face. This list includes transparency, disclosure, verifying facts, deceptive practices, and more. These are all things that we would expect PR to uphold, but in many cases, it has become difficult to do so. 

Employers need to uphold these ethical practices. PR professionals also need to have a set of moral and personal values to guide decision-making and behavior. They need to obtain core skills in public relations when it comes to ethics.

According to an article by PRSA, there are factors that can cause even honest and decent people to break the rules. This can include intense pressure by management to reach unrealistic goals or targets, demands that they must consistently beat their competitions, management's willingness to overlook small but persistent breaches of policy or ethics if the employee gets results, as well as fear of job loss or internal competitive disadvantage.

Leaders of larger companies may not know everything that is happening between the ranks. However, employees know what is acceptable versus what is not and how much deviation is possible.

So how can PR professionals help make a more ethical environment? To start, according to an article by PRSA, PR professionals should reveal the hazards of having lax ethical standards or enforcement. They should also encourage management to set up a way to report malpractice so employees can report serious violations anonymously. They can also suggest bringing in an outside firm to look at the standards and practices. Finally, they can promote the development of a clear set of standards and practices that the organization can convey and post on their website.

It is important to note, we all share the responsibility to create an ethical framework for practices. It is important to protect and maintain your credibility because once you have fractured it, it is hard to gain it back.

When you have concerns about ethical responsibilities within your organization, it is important to voice your concern and be honest. At the end of the day, PR professionals and journalists face ethical problems and responsibilities that need to be looked at so they can continue on.

Who is Behind our shared posts, or should I say What?

Jaiden Tabor jt283118@ohio.edu We all scroll through our Tiktoks, Instagram feeds, and Twitter feeds carelessly. Although we know something must be responsible for the origin of the posts, we trust that the fate of our for-you-pages and feeds show us credible content with reason. But this is not always the case. This relates to journalism and ethics because most of the news that is consumed by younger generations comes from easy accessibilty. It is easy to post a news article to Snapchat and trust that someone will be reading it because it's right in that person's hands. This has caused a lot of disruption in the journalism community not only due to credibility issues but reputation as well. In the case of Josh Shaw, university-run media at the University of South Carolina rushed to conclusions to post a story about their cornerback and how he sprained both his ankles. The story that was written read that he twisted them rescuing his 7-year-old nephew. The story went on to become a heartfelt lie and when the truth was revealed, not only was Shaw at fault but the news source as well. When the truth came out, it was Shaw who had made up the story and lied. The reason why the journalists were at fault was because they posted an inaccurate story. It is safe to say that many times, journalists are writing to protect. Protect the subject, protect the story, but it seems it can be lost in translation that it is important to protect yourself as a writer and the news outlet you work for.

To come full circle, this relates to the content that you consume on your social media. Many times, when reading, the common population does not worry about checking credibility and reputable sources. It is important for the new age journalists to educate and teach about how trolls and bots on the internet can post fake news, which yes is a real thing not just a term coined by former president Donald Trump. This is called digital civility . This term is used to describe said diversion. Teaching the younger generation that someone and something is writing their media is very important. This also relates to media bias and teaching the difference between a truthful article and a trendy article is crucial. It is also important because it creates healthy disputes online. Instead of trolls starting riots on posts, educated individuals can share their truth and opinions with information to back it up. In no one is social media a bad thing for news. The consumption rates of media have gone up significantly due to the accessibilty of social media and news shares on it. The conflict that is created is the dependability. When media consumption goes up so does a need for new stories. This can sometimes cause journalists to create false narratives in order to produce and meet a quota. This may have been the case for the Josh Shaw story. In conclusion, as a journalism student, it is not only my responsibility to create and share information but to share the resources that are credible for other consumers. This can decrease foreign involvement in our news and decrease problems for future writers and news outlets.

John Quiñones: The practices of a great journalist showcased

Audrianna Wilde

aw455919@ohio.edu

audrianna.wilde@gmail.com

    The E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University gave their Carr Van Anda award to ABC correspondent and "What Would You Do?" TV show host John Quiñones on Tuesday, Oct. 18. The award, which is named after the former Ohio University student and managing editor of The New York Times who used his writing and editing skills to transform The New York Times into the highly regarded international newspaper that we see today, is awarded each year to journalists recognized for outstanding work in their field.

John Quiñones gave his talk to journalism students Tuesday night. Photo courtesy of OUSPJ.

    While John Quiñones is mainly known for his hit TV series, his work as a journalist is outstanding, and his career's journey is one that is inspiring and a true tale of hard work and determination. John Quiñones spoke with journalism students about his work and his goal to depict the great human mosaic of our lived experiences in his stories. 

    John Quiñones grew up in Texas. His ancestors were immigrants from Mexico, and although his family had lived in the U.S. for decades, they were poor, and did not know any English. However, Quiñones did not let these factors stop him from pursing his dream to be a broadcast reporter. Quiñones said in his talk, that he always was taking "little steps forward". Any opportunity he got, he took. 

    Today, Quiñones has a long career behind him of almost 40 years in journalism. His stories, which can be found on his website, range from coverage of Jane Goodall's work in Africa studying chimpanzees, to heartbreaking yet eye-opening stories of homeless children living in the sewers of Bogota, Columbia, and modern day slavery in the Dominican Republic, where children were forced to cut sugar cane with no pay.

    During his talk, Quiñones also talked about a story he covered by posing as an immigrant wanting to cross the border, all while secretly recording and videotaping his whole experience. According to the SPJ code of ethics, undercover reporting should be avoided unless open methods of information gathering will not yield information vital to the public. Quiñones' story showed the emotionally and physically challenging act of crossing the border fully and truthfully, in a way that was never before seen. 

    Quiñones' work is a prime example of the journalist's job done the right way: ethically. Quiñones has told stories that tell the whole truth, opening up the public's eyes to their right to know about the stories of marginalized people in the Hispanic community, giving a voice to the voiceless. 

Ethical Behavior in Public Relations

Audrianna Wilde

aw455919@ohio.edu

audrianna.wilde@gmail.com

    Is ethical behavior in PR something employers want from their employees, is it something that they need to demonstrate, or both?

    Public relations is often seen as the industry of strategically lying. Oftentimes, when people think of public relations, they envision a management team trying to cover up a celebrity's latest leaked scandal, or a representative of a company telling white lies to gloss over egregious business practices. While this is not what PR is for, it has become a common misconception due to the fact that the industry may be lacking in stressing the importance of ethical behavior. This has, in return, led to individuals failing to meet the ethical standards of the industry, such as the PRSA code of ethics, and therefore creating a bad reputation for the entire industry.

    According to a three-year study done by the Commission on Public Relations, employers in the PR industry identified areas of skill that they expected people working in PR to be competent in. These employers ranked ethics among the top three skills that they desired in public relations professionals, however, the study also found that this skill, the ability to make ethical decisions and behave ethically, was among the hardest to find in potential employees. This was due to a number of factors, some of them being a lack of disclosure and transparency, selective truth-telling, the absence of consequences for unethical behavior and a lack of ethics training in general in the profession. The question is, how can employers fix these issues and find the people with the skills they desire?

Clipart Stock Image from pikpng.com

    Ironically, the root of the issue could actually be found in the very employers who want to hire people with skills in ethics. According to an article by PRSA, the corporate culture of PR can influence how PR professionals choose to behave. Executives should ask themselves: Are they addressing problems head-on by taking responsibility and acting with transparency by reporting such issues? Or do they reward cutting corners and covering up problems that arise? The truth is that employees' behaviors will follow the culture that management creates and rewards. If executives want ethical employees, it is important they take into account their role, holding themselves to the ethical standards of the profession to create an example worthy of admiration to those under them.

    So, what are some ways an ethical environment can be fostered in PR, to avoid perpetuating the negative stereotypes that follow the profession? According to PRSA, promoting a clear set of standards and practices that the organization can hold itself to, as well as holding people accountable for their actions is a start. Modeling the correct behavior for employees and posing consequences for unethical behavior can discourage unwanted actions. Other, preventative practices can include setting up a way for employees to report serious violations anonymously and bringing in outside firms to look at the standards and practices of the organization from an outside and unbiased standpoint. While it may not entirely be up to employers to set the standards of the PR industry, since all PR professionals should look to their own morality alongside professional codes of ethics, employers must recognize their immediate and impactful influence on the behaviors of their subordinates and act accordingly.

Ethical Responsibilities are Important in Organizations

 Payton Szymczak 

ps692718@ohio.edu

notyap5968@gmail.com

                               Source: https://www.wework.com/ideas/professional-development/business-solutions/what-makes-a-company-successful

    

    It is exceedingly important that the highest end of companies, the CEO, creates an environment for their employees valuing morally correct codes of ethics. Following ethical responsibilities in the particular company is important to stress, and hopefully if the CEO follows an ethical code, the employees trickling down the line of the entire company will as well. 

    In the article, Follow the Leader: Ethics and Responsibility, the idea of following ethical responsibilities is stressed. For example, as quoted in the article, the author, Virgil Scudder, stated, "One of a CEO's most important jobs is to create, foster and communicate the culture of the organization." This comes from words and from actions, and is hoped to be further communicated throughout the organization in order to create a well kept community and culture for employees. 

    The article also touches on red flags that could potentially expose the real culture of the organization. For example, the article explains how it is important to find out whether or not the corporate culture tries to face the particular issue head on and solve it or not and furthermore creating steps to fix them. Another factor explained in the article is whether or not a corporate culture rewards behavior that tries to cover things up which would be an example of a red flag. 

    The article progresses into further detail about what behavioral activity could potentially cause dishonesty in the organization, such as intense pressure towards the employees to meet unrealistic goals, the constant demand to beat their competitors, and the intense fear of losing their job. These factors can all create a dishonest organization and can possibly result in employees breaking the rules. 

    All of these factors lead into the topic of another article, Bits, Bytes and the Ethics of Data, the problem with the scientific methods to get insights from data. As Karen Swim, the author of this article, states, "In their quest for research funding, some data scientists might forego scientific rigor and ethical considerations." There needs to be responsibilities to make an ethical framework for data use and practices, as also explained in the article. People universally use data and statistics to trust certain sources and stories that they are reading their news from. The data collection should be accurate. 

    All in all, companies and organizations need to make sure they are displaying an ethically responsible and honest environment to instill trust. 

Building Ethical Environments from Top to Bottom

 John Steitz

js810618@ohio.edu

john.steitz.ou@gmail.com

Source: sloanreview.mit.edu

In a PRSA article titled Follow The Leader: Ethics and Responsibility, author Virgil Scudder dove into the 2011 ethics scandal that engulfed Rupert Murdoch’s tabloid, News of The World.

Scudder’s main point is that the company’s culture and ethical practices start from the top down. In Scudder’s own words, “employees will almost always behave in the manner that management expects from them.” Part of the job of an executive is to establish and cultivate the organization’s culture. Therefore, what employees see as ethically acceptable and unacceptable depends on the expectations that have been established and upheld by the organization.

There are a number of internal and external influences originating from leadership that may encourage unethical behavior. Organizational pressure to succeed at all costs is a large contributing factor to ethical violations that take place. Being under a lot of pressure to meet unrealistic goals or outdo the competition may also push someone to break the rules. A willingness by management to look the other way regarding small breaches of ethics in favor of positive results may also influence employees to violate or continue to violate our codes of ethics. Fear of losing one’s job may also encourage an employee to stretch the limits of ethically acceptable behavior. 

All of these possible influences will come from organizational leadership, and it’s our job as ethically and morally upstanding PR professionals to rise above these factors. Terry Goodrich said it best in his 2013 article on facing ethical pressure in a professional environment. According to Goodrich, PR professionals who provide ethical council must be as fervent to serve the public interest as they are to with regards to their organizational responsibilities. A public relations professional must consider oneself to be an “organizational conscience” and view themselves as an independent voice within the organization without being mired by its perspective or politics. 

Part of our job as public relations professionals is to be an advocate for the public good, which I discussed in my previous blog post on ethics. An effective PR professional disagrees with their organization when they need to and holds it accountable for its actions. “Yes men” have virtually no value whatsoever in public relations because of this. A good public relations professional doesn’t just view their position as a marketing tool- they also consider themselves problem solvers. With access to an organization’s legal counsel and key decision-makers, public relations professionals can engage in what Goodrich refers to as “fire-prevention,” as opposed to engaging in damage control which is more akin to fire-fighting. Clearly, the best plan of action is to avoid starting fires in the first place.

It’s in this role that public relations professionals can most impactfully contribute to their organization’s culture of ethics. By taking a more traditional “watchdog” approach to public relations work, we as professionals can ensure that the organizations we serve abide by our codes of ethics and engage in ethically and morally upstanding practices. In this way, we can contribute to our organizational cultures and keep them from being established exclusively by organizational leaders, while simultaneously keeping the public interest firmly in mind.

Journalism and PR in the Time of COVID-19

 Alex Semancik

as477018@ohio.edu

COVID-19 has altered virtually everyone's lives and the way society as a whole functions. The world has moved toward increasing digitization but the pandemic has appeared to extrapolate this digitization on a level that no one was expecting. This rapid change in how the world functions did not spare the fields of journalism and public relations. COVID-19 has changed these two industries and how they operate completely.

Reporters and those in the journalism and PR professions will tell anyone the same. On the journalism end of the spectrum, reporters are tasked with covering a phenomenon the likes of which no one living has ever seen before. According to an article from Agility PR solutions, "Nearly every reporter out there has had their beat shifted to include coronavirus coverage. As opposed to events like the infamous 9/11 attacks in the U.S. that have already happened or have a definitive beginning and end, COVID-19 is unique as it has no definitive end in sight. The pandemic is an ongoing issue that must be considered with every decision a journalist makes. As a reporter interviewed in the article from Agility PR Solutions states: "I don't think this is really comparable to any other event I've covered or any that's been covered in history."

Photo courtesy of istockphoto.com

Public relations specialists, social media coordinators, advertisers and everyone else under the PR umbrella are equally as impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic as their journalistic counterparts. The power of social media and advertising was truly unleashed as a result of the pandemic. In the early stages of lockdown in March, April and May of 2020 when people could hardly leave their homes, social media was essentially the only thing connecting a lot of people and fostering relationships (business or otherwise) that would normally be delegated as an in-person activity. Advertisers certainly took advantage of the pandemic as well, making sure to incorporate the COVID-19 pandemic into branding, messaging and the like (as if we weren't sick of hearing about it already).

Although COVID-19 has impacted nearly everything and everyone in the world in some way, I believe the fields of journalism and PR were specially altered. Reporters and broadcast journalists were required to add pandemic coverage to their already complex and long list of stories to report on. Nearly every story covered unrelated to COVID-19  could also have some sort of pandemic spin or impact from the pandemic. Those in the fields of PR, advertising and social media were given the reigns of powerful tools in a time of limited social contact and witnessed firsthand how those tools can shape an ever-digitizing world.