A Sociological Look at Journalism Ethics

Julia Brown
jb304306@ohio.edu

Constructivist vs. Positivist Perspectives
What interested me most about Jay Black’s article, “Minimum Standards vs. Ideal Expectations,” was the portion that analyzed the difference between the two types of journalism ethics codes based on the human condition. This past winter intercession I took a sociology course on deviant behavior, and learned some basic perspectives that, interestingly enough, pertained to the assigned article and governed my mind throughout the reading.

Black says that, “ethics focuses on the voluntary nature of our behavior,” which is clearly visible after explaining the two types of journalistic codes: minimal standard codes and ideal expectations, or aspirational codes.

Similarly, when it comes to deviant behavior, there are two main perspectives:

1. Constructivist, and
2. Positivist

As described in the article, "What are Positive or Constructivist Theories in Crime and Social Deviance?" written by Natalie Petitto on eHow.com, positivist and constructivist theories explain "not only the causes of deviance and crime, but society's role in constructing the deviant."

Loosely, the positivist perspective argues that deviance is often a product of causation and not necessarily of the person's will or choice. On the other hand, the constructionist perspective tends to look inward by studying society’s view of deviance.

Minimum Standards vs. Ideal Expectations
What all this ends up boiling down to, is the drawing of parallels between journalism ethics and the human condition.

From what I’ve previously studied, certain theories within the positivist perspective are similar to the basis of ideal expectations and aspirational codes.

Most positivists believe that humans are inherently good, and deviance is caused when certain forces get in the way of this (i.e. environmental or psychological). Similarly, ideal expectations and aspirational codes maintain a positive view of journalism, showcasing perceived ideals, offering guidance and defining “the virtuous journalist.” (For example the SPJ ethics manual, Doing Ethics In Journalism, is an example of an aspirational code.) As Black says, ideal expectations “indicate a faith in one’s fellow beings, [and] a recognition that inherently decent people are trying to do better.”

On the other hand, minimal standard codes are usually a more negative reflection of the journalist and, as Black mentions, tend to be written by management - rather than writers who would follow them on a daily basis. He says minimal codes "[seem] to reflect a world of neurosis if not outright paranoia. The fundamental assumption... that people are inherently flawed, and morally primitive.”

Due to it's negative outlook and managerial position, minimal standard codes can be seen as similar to the constructivist perspective of being an outsider looking in to describe deviance in terms of society.

New Media, New Technology, New Ethics?

By: S.A. Cruikshank
sc249608@ohio.edu

Journalists wishing to do their job ethically have no shortage of codes to follow in general. There's the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics among others. Now, however, journalism organizations are now reconsidering their codes to include information about how to ethically use new media. For example, RTDNA recently released social media guidelines to avoid what Poynter's Al Tompkins called "ethical traps.". These new guidelines include asking critical questions about the source of video and pictures and determining if a story is significant.

New Ethics Needed?
These guidelines are certainly helpful for any journalist, and as the guidelines suggest, a conversation should be had in the newsroom about the role of social media in that particular news organization. However, are these guidelines, or a new look at ethics really needed when it comes to social media? Shouldn't a journalist reporting in traditional media carefully check sources? And shouldn't that person make sure a story is significant before he or she publishes or broadcasts it? A careful examination of the new guidelines and the SPJ Code of Ethics reveal similarities throughout.

Same Argument, Different Topic
New technologies and new media have always sparked these kinds of conversations among journalists. Take for example, the introduction of computers and editing software. How far is too far when it comes to using editing software to bring photos or videos to the audience? Time Magazine became the center of a controversy when it darkened the background of O.J. Simpson's mugshot for dramatic effect. People were outraged, and it has been named as one of the most controversial magazine covers ever.

New Media, Same Ethics
The reality is, journalism at its core, no matter the medium, has not changed over the years. Journalism should be a public service, and ethics is an important part of performing that service correctly. The first SPJ Code of Ethics was developed in 1926, and it has served an important role in journalism ever since. It can be difficult in a world of immediacy and ratings, but journalists should keep in mind that their first job is to keep the public informed. That starts with being ethical, no matter the cost.

Media Codes of Ethics: How Journalists Saved Facea

By Brian Cox
bc268208@ohio.edu

Code of Ethics as a Public Relations Stint:
In the early half of the 20th century, the journalism community had one colossal flaw, majority of the public saw the profession as corrupt and ‘low life.’ The extravagant and often sensationalized work of the 1920’s could be held responsible for this image, but regardless of its origin, journalists had to find a way to create faith in the discipline. A solution to this was to create a code of ethics for professionals to follow. If there was a piece of paper that the journalists could use as a guideline, the public could no longer find fault it their practices. A journalism code of ethics is much like every other PR activity that other professions do. Yes, it is extremely meaningful and should be followed, but to be a journalist means you follow these guidelines closely.

In 2010, British Petroleum launched a massive ad campaign trying to save face after the devastating Gulf Coast oil spill. Now, making a connection between toxic oil and corrupt journalists is a far reach, but when there are things compromising your business success, you have to find ways to reassure the public that you are trustworthy and there for the people.

The Journalism Code of Ethics: in our newsrooms and on our minds:
The many different Codes of Ethics in the journalism community runs in line with our moral codes. All journalists should know how to write in an ethical manor. We do not need a piece of paper to tell us if we are breaking any rules, it should be an instant and unconscious response. Although it should be etched in all of our minds, we still see a copy of one or more of the codes posted to a bulletin board in every newsroom. Much like the calendar we all purchase at the beginning of the year, we glance over at it occasionally, but we never walk over and read it. The reason for this is that we already know what it says without reading it. We are well aware that we are on a crusade to find the truth. Reporting with anything but the truth goes against our profession, not just our ethical stance. Accountability is a lesson we are taught as small children. Our parents punish us for our actions and over time, we learn that we are responsible for those actions. When work is published, a journalist knows that responsibility for the outcomes is on the shoulders of the journalist. A journalism code of ethics is not purposeless for a journalist, we just have to understand that we already have a grasp on its information and we can utilize our own moral codes when making important ethical decisions.

On April Fool’s Day, the joke can be on journalists-

Michael "Clay" Carey
mailto:ymc267210@ohio.edu

I like funny stuff. And I love a good practical joke.

But I'm not a big fan of newspaper editors-turned-pranksters who seem to pop up every April 1.

Joke stories turn up every year as newspapers try to put forward a lighter side. A newspaper friend showed me this one, which ran Friday in The Shelbyville Times-Gazette in my home state of Tennessee. The headline: "City manager to be chosen by reality TV."

It's a short story, six paragraphs plus an editor's note, and I guess it's funny. The gist is that officials want to find their next municipal CEO through an Apprentice-style weekly competition, complete with television cameras, outrageous challenges and a flashy ending - each week's loser gets shoved into the Duck River by a Shelbyville City Council member.

You don't have to be a genius to figure out the gag. The outlandishness of the story aside, there are hints, including the name of the production company that would make the show (Loof Lirpa, April Fool spelled backward). And if that wasn't enough, the following editor's note appears at the end: "Readers would be well advised to check their calendar, not to believe everything they read or hear today, and to have a safe and pleasant April Fool's Day." The Times Gazette does this every year on April 1 (see past stories here, here and here).

I'm troubled by these stories and others like them for ethical reasons. The ethical guidelines published by the American Society of Newspaper Editors and the Society of Professional Journalists speak to accuracy. SPJ advises that stories should not misrepresent. ASNE similarly tells us stories should be held to a high standard of accuracy. Those codes weren't written with Loof Lirpa in mind, but journalists would do well to remember them when they consider pranking readers.

Sometimes, people don't get the joke. When that happens, the newspaper gets a black eye and communities get stirred up - just ask the Evanston (Ill.) Round Table.

Evanston Newspaper Plays April Fools' Joke on Readers: MyFoxCHICAGO.com

As media professionals, we can't assume, as the Round Table did, that people will automatically pick up on jokes. Some newspaper readers may not make it all the way to the end of a story, where the joke is revealed (news companies like Gannett train writers with this in mind). In any case, readers expect news stories to be serious and, well, truthful.

I don't have a problem with levity, on April 1 or any other day. Do it in a column on the editorial page, or get creative with a serious story about something comical.

But front pages are serious the other 364 days of the year. On April Fool's Day, editors shouldn't assume their readers share their senses of humor.

Breakdown of Standards

Jenny Chufar
jc191106@ohio.edu

In the journalism profession, we are taught to always be honest and true. However, as a PR major my family often jokes saying, "How can you possibly be honest in a PR career?" I've also heard before that PR professionals are just "paid liars". Despite these sometimes harsh remarks about my future career, it does make me wonder what the journalism field has done wrong to put such thoughts into peoples heads.

For the readings on truth I focused on the idea of self-inflected wounds. It amazed me how journalists for well-known newspapers, such as USA TODAY and The New York Times, were able to publish fabricated stories. I suspect then, that journalists have this bad image of being liars and stretching the truth because of the handful of journalists who do wrong and ignore ethical codes. Because some journalists have such low ethical standards, it comes as no surprise that newspapers, magazines and television stations have an ethical code for journalists to live up to.

Daniel Allen Berkowitz discusses truth in journalism in the book "Social Meanings of News" in chapter three under the subtitle "Journalism and Truth". It is argued that journalism that does strive for the truth and that truth is key in journalism. As a journalist I tend to believe him, because 95 percent of the journalists that I know are truthful, and do seek out honesty.

The breakdown in journalism standards could be caused by a variety of reasons. In our reading "Confronting the Culture" it is young professionals who are to blame for the downfall of ethical journalism. Another possible reason could be because mainstream media is more concerned with unimportant news just because it is more interesting than hard news.

But the fact still remains that there will always be other writers whom continue to give the journalism profession a bad image. That negative image is something we as journalists will always have to strive to prove wrong, while holding up our ethical standards.

Here is a youtube video showing clips of PR in television and movies. Is it possible that PR has a bad name because of how it is portrayed in entertainment?

Ethics Codes—do they work?

Nadine Ajakana

na177607@ohio.edu

Jay Black cites the difference between ethics and law as simply: ethics implies making difficult choices about voluntary behavior, while law is concerned with the obvious choices between right and wrong. For example, a choice concerned with ethics was the The Washington Post and New York Times’ decision about publishing the Unabomber’s manifesto. He mentions that organizations write codes to address these—these codes fall into two categories: minimal standards and aspirational. It was certainly interesting reading codes of ethics that spanned across all journalistic professions, and seeing that most codes fell into the latter category. I find myself agreeing with Black—that aspirational codes reflect faith in our fellow man and woman, and that they tend to offer suggestions on how to make the world a better place. Indeed, in our profession, there seems to be no shortage of these codes—SPJ, ASNE, RTDNA, NPPA, and some other acronyms for groups of journalism professionals that I, quite frankly, did not even know existed, all have codes of ethics that uphold a very optimistic view of journalism. These codes began to crop up in the 1920s, to combat the lowlife and scummy reputation journalists had back then.

As I read the codes for the different professions, there were many similarities and themes that recurred in all of them. Truth and accuracy are mentioned in every single code, and some idea of impartiality is stressed in all the codes except PRSA and AAF. However, there are differences tailored to the specific mediums—for example, the National Press Photographers Association’s code stresses not altering any photo, and the PRSA code mentions loyalty to those that the professionals may represent. Additionally, I couldn’t help noticing that ONA, the Online News Association, had the smallest code of ethics. Perhaps this is because online journalism is still so new relative to the other professions. At any rate, there seems to be no dearth of advice on online ethics out there—for example, the Reuter’s Global Editor for Ethics talking about their approach to online journalism ethics:

If all these codes exist postulating that journalists should strive to be ethical above all other things, I wonder, then, why the public seems to think the opposite? If there are certain values that appear to be inherent in journalism fields, why does the public perceive journalism as unethical and biased? My best answer would be that certain, very publicized instances of a lack of integrity by journalists stand out in many people’s minds, and they are quick to make assumptions about all journalists as a result of this. Truthfully, I do not know the answer. I am looking forward to uncovering more of why this is the case as we continue reading, and perhaps to learn what the best steps are to combat this unfortunate generalization.

The Business of Media

Stefanie Toth
st135906@ohio.edu

It's funny that I have spoken about the conflict between business and journalism in a few classes this year. The interesting thing about this subject is the idea that business should not interfere in news gathering, yet news gathering and reporting would not exist without money.

The major problem with the newspaper industry in America is editors and businesspeople argue over the right way to present the news. The sad fact is they don't understand each other. The editor doesn't care about money, except when it comes to keeping the newspaper alive. The CEO expects to make a profit from the minute the news hits the web.

Whoever made the decision to place print stories online for free was using the wrong business model, plain and simple. This is how I personally view it because, in the end, it hurt more to give away the facts.

I came into this profession to write informative news stories for the public. It saddens me to know the public doesn't want to support the media and pay a dollar or two for the work they do(and I don't mean a large-scale profit model). It can be compared to the whole issue of illegal downloading. After all, the music didn't appear out of thin air.

My solution to this problem is to convince the public that our news is better than anything found online, or basically it's worth paying the money. Bloggers and other online sources keep slipping up and eventually the public will have to realize that is why the real, professional journalist exists.