Ethics In Journalism

Rossen Vassilev Jr.
rv727716@ohio.edu

The three articles in the 1st readings for this week offer three very different expert opinions, each trying to explain from a distinct political/ideological perspective the reasons for declining public confidence in the mainstream news media. Echoing the political pessimism of Walter Lippmann's seminal book Public Opinion, Brooke Gladstone, a contemporary liberal writer, asserts that while Americans demand accuracy and impartiality from journalists, what they really want is “affirmation” of their own traditional views, political beliefs, ideological prejudices and stereotypes.

Reviving the old Nixonian mistrust of and hostility toward the “liberal news media,” Timothy Carney, a conservative columnist, blames the “liberal bias” of journalists for fostering “distrust among readers and viewers.” Rekindling old grievances about racism and discrimination, Communications Professor Catherine Squires blames American journalism's “double standard” regarding the country's black minority for African-Americans' distrust of the news media as “an institution.”

Public trust in the news media seems to have declined even further in the three years since the publication of these three articles. According to a 2017 piece in The Hill, a liberal online newspaper, “Nearly two-thirds of Americans say the mainstream press is full of fake news, a sentiment that is held by a majority of voters across the ideological spectrum. According to data from the latest Harvard-Harris poll, which was provided exclusively to The Hill, 65 percent of voters believe there is a lot of fake news in the mainstream media. That number includes 80 percent of Republicans, 60 percent of independents and 53 percent of Democrats. Eighty-four percent of voters said it is hard to know what news to believe online.”

The lack of credibility crisis is getting much worse today due to the very acrimonious political climate, divisive partisan politics, and especially the controversies surrounding the so-called “fake news media,” which President Donald Trump has bombastically and rather opportunistically labeled “the number one enemy of the American people.” (Does this mean that Al-Qaeda and ISIS/ISIL are off the hook now?!)

But this fashionable, if self-serving “trumpism” is confirmed by the results of more credible public-opinion surveys such as the Axios/MonkeySurvey poll conducted June 15-19, 2018, according to which 72 percent of all respondents think that the news media tend to report “fake, false or purposely misleading news,” including 92 percent of Republicans, 79 percent of independents and 53 percent of Democrats. Only 25 percent of all respondents in that particular poll believe that the news media “rarely or never” lie, including just 7 percent of Republicans, 20 percent of independents and 46 percent of Democrats. President Trump has himself contributed the most to the perceived absence of honesty and truthfulness in politics by reportedly averaging 15 false or misleading claims a day throughout 2018.

What are my thoughts on The Elements of Journalism chapters 1 and 10 in the 2nd readings for this week? In my opinion, the most valuable and useful contribution of these two chapters is setting forth the essential principles and obligations of ethical journalism, as listed in the book's Introduction. Here specifically are the ten elements of ethical responsibility common to all good journalism, according to authors Bill Kovach and Tom Rosenstiel (page 9):

1. Journalism’s first obligation is to the truth.
2. Its first loyalty is to citizens.
3. Its essence is a discipline of verification.
4. Its practitioners must maintain an independence from those they cover.
5. It must serve as an independent monitor of power.
6. It must provide a forum for public criticism and compromise.
7. It must strive to keep the significant interesting and relevant.
8. It must keep the news comprehensive and proportional.
9. Its practitioners must be allowed to exercise their personal conscience.
10. Citizens have rights and responsibilities when it comes to the news as well—even more so as they become producers and editors themselves. (In the age of the Internet, any social media-savvy citizen can be a journalist).

To these ten essential elements of responsible journalism one may add other ethical responsibilities and standards such as objectivity, honesty, fairness, balance, accuracy, impartiality, transparency, accountability, credibility, etc.

I personally believe that a good, conscientious media professional must adhere to these journalistic principles and practices at all times, even if it means being fired from one's job or investigated, interrogated and black-listed by the government—as in the case of a popular Bulgarian investigative reporter, Ms. Dyliana Guytandzhieva, who had reported that huge quantities of Bulgaria's heavy weaponry were being shipped by American and Saudi middlemen to Al-Nusra (Al-Qaeda) and other jihadist terrorist gangs in Syria. Or even if it means being arbitrarily prosecuted, arrested and thrown in jail—like Julian Assange, the great Wikileaks journalist, who has now become the world's most famous political prisoner.

But I fear that professional journalism nowadays is moving in the exact opposite direction. For example, if Daniel Ellsberg had submitted the top-secret Pentagon Papers to our leading newspapers today (rather than in 1971), no current chief editor would dare publish them for fear of being branded a traitor, a threat to national security or a puppet of North Vietnam and Communist China. Because ethically responsible journalism is much easier said than done.

The Whole Truth and Nothing But the Truth...?

Amanda Southern

as600718@ohio.edu

Does anyone actually tell the whole truth anymore? 

I have to say...the question has crossed my mind while reading news articles, lately. It seems these days information moves so quickly, and everybody seems to be in such a state of panic to be the first to share breaking news (journalist or not) that it doesn't seem to matter if the news they are sharing is completely true.

It also turns out that even if that news is coming from a respected journalist or news source, a story still doesn't have to be true to some readers. 

People have decided that if they don't like what they are hearing or reading, then the writer must be making it up or, at the very least, omitting the parts that make the story read the way they want it to. 

Image retrieved from https://eavi.eu/beyond-fake-news-10-types-misleading-info/3-x-2-signe-cartoon-fake-news/

Unfortunately, these people are not entirely wrong in their thinking. Over recent years, newspapers and other media outlets have had to compete with bloggers and the public to be first to press with the most attention-getting stories due to the internet. The pressure is on because these stories not only give them exposure, but also keep their businesses up and running and writers paid. 

With this sort of constant pressure, many of these media outlets have turned to reporting on outlandish entertainment news and gossipy-style stories which has led to the public feeling like their news outlets are slumming it with the rest of the tabloids by saying whatever it takes to make them money. 

Another thing that is not helping the media earn and maintain the respect of the public is the seemingly-constant whistle-blowing of journalists against other journalists for lying in their reporting. Check out this example of  Glenn Greenwald calling out CNN for what he says was "an outright lie." I

t's not to say that journalists shouldn't call one another out for false reports, but that it happens so often, now, it is hard to tell who is really telling the truth.

It also doesn't help their image when long-respected journalists are also getting caught embellishing or completely making things up, such as Brian Williams and Bill O'Reilly along with a long list of others who fabricated facts to sell a story.

What is the public supposed to do when they are constantly being shown that journalists are not to be trusted? 

It is essential that journalists find a way to maintain their ethical code even amid all of the political and societal pressures that come with the job. Anyone can be a journalist with the internet at their fingertips, but it will be the sources who come up with the most researched, and most thorough reporting time after time that will find themselves on top, in the end.

Do You Trust the Media?

Rebecca Marion
rm812416@ohio.edu


After reading chapter 10 of The Elements of Media, it is no stretch of the imagination to wonder why people distrust the media to tell them the truth. At its core, a news organization should be designed to be trustworthy with its writers following suit by abiding to a strict code of ethics set forth to adhere to the organization’s mission statement.

Writers like Jayson Blair, whose story is covered in The Elements Of Media, can bring down the reputation of an entire paper with one fell swoop, leaving readers to wonder how many other articles are based on mere speculation and not truth. Even though some reporters fail to observe the code of ethics tasked to them, I find that they are generally the exception and not the rule. 

According to The Elements of Media, “journalism is an act of character.” This makes the words and actions of each reporter a representation of his/her own code of ethics and not simple a news source’s reliability. 

With that said, individuals like President Donald Trump seem keen on the idea of using fake news to propel the narrative that fake news is the most prevalent kind of news available to the masses. Journalism may be writing in a hurry, but that doesn’t mean that all reports use that as an excuse to fudge the details. 

https://www.cnbc.com/video/2017/01/11/trump-to-cnn-reporter-you-are-fake-news.html

According to a poll released by the Knight Foundation and Gallup, a majority of people have lost trust in the media. The poll also found that the respondents of the poll who paid least attention to the media were those who distrusted the media the most. 

With reports like Jayson Blair and the President of the United States referring to the press as the enemy of the people, it is no surprise that people have heavy and lingering doubts about the media. Trump's administration has gone so far as to revoke CNN reporter Jim Acosta’s press pass after refusing to give back a microphone which he used to ask President Trump about his immigration policy. 

When tasked with writing the truth the way to achieve such a goal is relatively simple: work hard and work honestly, so that you can say your stories fall in line with a firm code of ethics. Honesty is never a luxury when it comes to journalism, but an ethic in itself that is never to be ignored by writers or readers. 

The Blair Fidged Project

Juan, J, Guevara So, I just read Chapter 10 of Elements of Journalism and it leaves me with… a lot. It is a sad thing to witness a profession, any profession, be misrepresented by one bad apple. In this reading, that bad apple is Jayson Blair. Blair fabricated stories, based his writings on reports that other journalist wrote, and his “eyewitness” details came from photos which he saw in the Times photo archives. This Blair guy was like if the universe created a living representation of the word plagiarism. The unfortunate thing about this is others reported Blair’s ethically suspicious behavior up the chain of command with little effect, which, brings me to my point. People like Blair, they are, unfortunately... everywhere. McDonald's have Blairs in the form of an employee stating he checked the expiration date prior to leaving work when in fact he did not or blatantly steal from customer’s. Convenience stores, Grocery stores, Law Enforcement, The Federal Government, there are Blairs everywhere you look! But, luckily for us, there are plenty of people looking out for Blair’s because, plain and simple, Blair’s are bad for business. Blair’s are selfish, greedy, and, no hold’s barred type of people who will compromise on even the holiest of principles. For what? For anything; promotions, payouts, relevance, or just having someone sit there and give them even the tiniest attention.

Logan Paul, Youtuber.

Because we know there are people like that out there, everyone, not just supervisors, have a responsibility to police ourselves. The price is too high not to. One person can cause damage which will take years to recover from. It can take so long, the person who caused the damage may be well gone, yet, the wounds this person caused to the industry are very much still raw and open. We need to check each other about what we say and even how we say it. Recently, The FBI stated they were struggling to recruit new, special agents. A position, which, in the past, needed absolutely no marketing. It seems to me, some of the statements and actions made by a small few have damaged the perception and reputation of a once, internationally coveted, organization and who knows how long it will take to recover that prestigiousness. If I think about it more, I might dare say, I, have once in my life been a Blair. When we decide to satisfy our own needs, I think, sometimes, we tend to do it at the expense of others. Don’t be a Blair, and, if you find someone else being a Blair, you have the full green light from the rest of us to call them out. Because the price is too high, especially, when what your selling is supposed to be the truth.

“Facts are the Enemy of Truth” – Don Quixote – Man of La Mancha

Valeria Santizo

vs178718@ohio.edu

It seems like people can say whatever they want these days. However, to solely blame our media system for fake news is irresponsible and takes away the responsibility of the audience. There needs to be more action on the part of consumers of the media to say no to fake news. It is our responsibility as citizens to demand fact checking, diverse opinions, and more representation in the newsroom. It is important for individuals to read entire stories instead of just a headline, or to do some fact checking on their own. It’s supply and demand, we need to demand more unbiased stories. With out the demand for fact checking we end up getting stories that paint victims in a bad light and unequal representation for individuals, mainly people of color.

Take for example the murder of Nia Wilson. Nia was waiting on the Bay Area Rapid Transit Station (BART) platform when she was stabbed to death by John Cowell.  There was no motivation for the vicious attack. When news channels covered the story there was one that got a lot of backlash for an image they displayed of Nia Wilson. Keep in mind Nia was only 18 years old and had a clean record, there was nothing to indicate she had a violent past. However, despite these facts the news channel, KTVU Fox 2, decided to display Nia Wilson holding what appeared to be a gun. The family members of Nia Wilson were very upset when they found this image all over social media because they felt it was painting their 18-year-old daughter as a violent person. After some fact checking it was addressed that the “gun” Nia was holding in the picture was nothing more than a phone case shaped as a gun. Had it not been for fact checking and Nia Wilson’s family taking action, KTVU Fox 2 would not have been held accountable.

Another example of the lack of fact checking the media does, was the murder of Trayvon Martin. Trayvon was visiting Sanford, Florida, where his father lived in a gated community.  Trayvon was walking to his father’s home after visiting a nearby convenience store. While walking back to his father’s home he noticed he was being followed by a man in a car. It was raining and Trayvon, a 17-year-old high school student, got spooked and started running for safety. During this time the man in the car, George Zimmerman, made a call to the non- emergency Stanford Police department. The person on the phone asked him to stop following Trayvon and dispatched police to the location. After the phone call, there was an altercation between Zimmerman and Martin that ended with Trayvon being shot multiple times. George Zimmerman was charged with manslaughter. However, during this trial the media showed stories of Trayvon having THC, the substance found in marijuana, in his system at the time of his death. They tried to paint a negative image of this adolescent claiming this is what lead to his altercation with George Zimmerman, who claimed self-defense during his trail. However, what the media did not mention is that, the amount of THC found in Martin’s system was so little it would have little to no effect on his behavior.

These are not the only people who have been affected by irresponsible reporting. There are countless people who instead of being treated as victims, were portrayed in a negative light. There is no doubt that the media is to blame for a lot of this. However, it is important to do our own fact checking and to hold institutions accountable for irresponsible reporting. We owe it to ourselves and to each other to demand equal representation for everyone, especially people of color that are still being marginalized. Therefore, facts are the enemy of truth because when we demand credible facts, the “truth” is seen for the lie it is.

Who Do You Trust?

Gregory Petersen gp420718@ohio.edu

Walter Cronkite once said, "Journalism is what we need to make democracy work." These words are more important now than when he said them. The world could use Walter Cronkite right now.

Journalism has taken on a different look, but the principles need to remain the same. In fact, since it is so much easier to relay a message the responsibility of the journalist has increased. There is also a more unfiltered element, and we are seeing that in a more direct fashion now.

Generally speaking, if the President of the United States speaks, those words are supposed to be newsworthy, for better or worse. President Trump has made himself known for being incredibly unfiltered, and has offended many people. He has also set himself up to be an easy topic for ridicule. So how does the news report on an inane rambling without losing their own credibility?

This was the case even before he took office. The president's Tweets have been fodder for late night talk show jokes, and screaming talking heads. How does the press retain its integrity when it must report on these elements?

There is another important element here, and that is we are talking about things that can deal with national security and other serious matters. This can be dangerous if there is no vetting process.

It seems sad to say that credible journalists must report on Twitter rants, but so much of this goes back to the importance of the office. The words of the President of the United States must be taken seriously, even if they are widely seen as ridiculous. The press still has a job to do.

Like Bill Kovach and Tim Rosenstiel talk about in The Elements of Journalism, a task of reporting or presenting news is to make sense of a situation. This may seem like the set up to a punch line, but that is the reality of this current situation. Late night Twitter rants—often times using words like "fake news"—have become real news, and merit reporting.

There is also the need for the journalist to exercise his or her own personal conscience. A slant can be put on practically any story, and that slant can affect the way that story is perceived. From there that person's feelings can spread to more people, and have multiplying effects.

The bottom line here is that the journalist needs to report the news, not create it. This is something that needs to be done with integrity, even if it feels like the subject matter does not warrant this type of respect. It is interesting to think about how Walter Cronkite would have reported on President Trump's Twitter rants. While the topic could have seemed absurd to him, the reporting would still cut to the truth of the matter, and would be anything but fake news.

The media..How honest are you?

Paige Zsebik
pz862718@ohio.edu

      The media.. Let's talk about it. When you think of media, what comes to mind? Social media such as Twitter or Instagram? How about your local Fox channel or the New York Times? As a 21 year old, my first honest thought is social media. I start thinking about Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. But how true is the information that is being posted on these sites?

       Often young adults in this day are quick to assume something on social media can be held fully truthful, without stopping to question where that information originally came from. This is only half our problem though. Another problem our country faces is weeding through the information brought to us by news channels such as Fox.

        We once again are faced with the task of weeding out our Fox information, such as we are with social media. But why is that? Why do we not have a full trust in our information sources? It is because recently our media is filled with facts as well as opinions. On top of facts and opinions, certain channels such as Fox, or a certain news site, will add in hints of their majority political view. It will get added so subtly, views may not even notice at first.

       Our world needs the news. Without the news, our country would not and could not be aware of what is happening in neighboring states or even other countries. We also would not know simple things such as the weather. We rely on the news to keep us safe from local and nationwide threats. With as much knowledge we need the news to supply us, you really would not think there was room for opinions, but they make it!

       One article titled, "The Shocking Truth Behind Media Revealing The Shocking Truth", the author points out great aspects on the "true" things we are all reading on the internet and then believing them! https://medium.com/swlh/the-shocking-truth-behind-media-revealing-the-shocking-truth-cb26ac5d7e2b As a society, we need to read what is being posted online, and then be able to digest it and pick out the facts versus opinions.

       Should we have to pick out the opinions and the biases? No. Do we have to? Yes. This is because there is nothing stopping those websites from posting false information, there is nothing stopping the news stations from adding their opinions. There is no filter. We the viewers and readers are that filter.

      One last idea to counter balance my thoughts behind the media, is this..What do we think the people writing those opinionated posts or reporting that news thinks? Do they know what they are doing is wrong? I found this story quite interesting and it helped me see the other side of the story. http://www1.cbn.com/700club/marlise-kast-truth-behind-tabloid-media. But then again, do we believe it?

                                          http://www.davegranlund.com/cartoons/