Chapter 1: Why Ethics Matters in Journalism

The Study of Ethics in Journalism

Bob Steele, “Why ethics matters,” poynteronline, Aug. 9, 2002. Steele identifies the kinds of people who try to divert journalists from their duty to inform the public. http://www.poynter.org/content/content_view.asp?id=9512

Anna Quindlen, “The great obligation,” Newsweek, April 19, 2004. Journalism schools should teach not just accuracy, but empathy. Quindlen believes you really learn empathy by covering stories, not studying them, by imagining yourself in the place of the people you interview. http://www.newsweek.com/id/53764/page/1

Michael Oreskes, “Navigating a minefield,” American Journalism Review, November 1999. There are pitfalls aplenty in today’s fast-paced, Internet-driven media landscape. That makes maintaining basic standards more important than ever. http://www.ajr.org/article_printable.asp? id=651

Pew Center for the People & the Press, “In changing news landscape, even television is vulnerable: Trends in news consumption: 1991-2012.” Sept. 27, 2012. “The transformation of the nation’s news landscape has already taken a heavy toll on print news sources, particularly print newspapers. But there are now signs that television news – which so far has held onto its audience through the rise of the internet – also is increasingly vulnerable, as it may be losing its hold on the next generation of news consumers. Online and digital news consumption, meanwhile, continues to increase, with many more people now getting news on cell phones, tablets or other mobile platforms. And perhaps the most dramatic change in the news environment has been the rise of social networking sites.” http://www.people-press.org/2012/09/27/in-changing-news- landscape-even-television-is-vulnerable/

Project for Excellence in Journalism, “State of the News Media 2012.” In the ninth of its series, PEJ reports: “In 2011, the digital revolution entered a new era. The age of mobile, in which people are connected to the web wherever they are, arrived in earnest. More than four in ten American adults now own a smartphone. One in five owns a tablet. New cars are manufactured with internet built in. With more mobility comes deeper immersion into social networking.” http://stateofthemedia.org/

Liz Harper, “Seeking ethical standards,” Online Newshour, Dec. 10, 2004. http://www.pbs.org/newshour/media/media_ethics/standard.php

Honing Decision Skills Through Case Studies

James Carey, introduction to Tom Rosenstiel and Amy S. Mitchell (Eds.), Thinking Clearly: Cases in Journalistic Decision-Making (New York: Columbia University Press, 2003), 1-5. A discussion of the case-study method.

Red Light/Green Light Ethics Roy Peter Clark, “Red light, green light: a plea for balance in media ethics,” May 17, 2005. http://www.poynter.org/content/content_view.asp?id=82553

Russell Frank, “Maybe we’re too ethical: Today’s students tiptoe around sensitive stories,” Quill, April 2003. (Academic databases)

Lovelle Svart’s Video Diary

Video: Svart video diary, Sept. 28, 2007. Lovelle Svart’s online diary of her last months of life, which is discussed in the opening of this chapter in The Ethical Journalist. http://blog.oregonlive.com/multimedia/2007/09/lovelle_svart_1945_2007.html