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Chequebook Journalism: a South African Picture

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CHEQUEBOOK JOURNALISM: A SOUTH AFRICAN PICTURE Susan Lisabeth Stos A research report submitted to the Faculty of the Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Journalism Johannesburg, 2009 ii ABSTRACT Chequebook Journalism in Television Actuality – a South African Picture Susan L. Stos Department of Journalism University of the Witwatersrand November 2008 Chequebook journalism is the convention of paying for stories. It is considered antithetical to good journalism, yet is essentially ignored in many codes of conduct. This research report investigates television actuality programs Carte Blanche, Special Assignment and Third Degree in which the theory, as well as the practice of chequebook journalism was discussed with the journalists and executive producers. Discussion expanded into other contingent, morally suspect areas of payment, and the lines they felt should not be transgressed. Four focus groups of viewers then debated chequebook journalism and the quality of these programs. It was anticipated that the practice of journalism would be in line with audience views yet the standard of journalism as herein established surpassed viewer estimation. Whereas the topic has been written of extensively in many first world English‐ speaking countries, no research has been conducted in South Africa, thus adding valuable information to the study of journalism. Key words: chequebook journalism, paying for stories, buying stories, ethics, television journalism iii DECLARATION I declare that this research report is my own unaided work. It is submitted for the degree of Master of Journalism in the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. It has not been submitted before for any other degree or examination in any other university. ____________________________________________ Susan Lisabeth Stos _________________ day of ________________________, 2009. iv To my husband Neville Toerien, and my daughters Lara and Dana, with gratitude and love for their encouragement, support and understanding during the writing of this paper. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I gratefully acknowledge assistance from the following people: The more than two dozen journalists who generously provided their time and valuable information both on and off the record; Oscar Lockwood, Mike Gibbsons and the staff at Lifestyle Nurseries for their help in assembling focus groups and for providing the venue; 26 focus group members who were interested enough to want to take part; and the many people who kindly gave their time to provide essential background information. This research report would not have been possible without the indispensable guidance from my supervisor, Franz Kruger vi CONTENTS Chapter 1 AIM, RATIONALE AND RESEARCH QUESTIONS 1.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………………………… 1 1.2 Aim ……………………………………………………………………………………… 2 1.3 Research Questions …………………………………………………………….. 2 1.4 Rationale …………………………………………………………………………….. 2 1.4.1 Carte Blanche ……………………………………………………………. 4 1.4.2 Special Assignment ……………………………………………………. 4 1.4.3 Third Degree ……………………………………………………………… 4 Chapter 2 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK AND LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1 A Short Discussion of Ethics ……………………………………………….. 5 2.2 Journalism Ethics ……………………………………………………………….. 6 2.3 Journalism as a Profession …………………………………………………. 8 2.4 Journalistic Codes of Ethics ………………………………………………… 10 2.5 Normative Theories of the Media ………………………………………. 12 2.5.1 The Social Responsibility Theory ……………………………….. 13 2.6 Journalism’s Guiding Principles ………………………………………….. 14 2.7 Political Economy of the Media ………………………………………….. 15 2.7.1 Competition ………………………………………………………………. 16 2.8 Ethics of Chequebook Journalism ………………………………………. 16 2.8.1 Definitions …………………………………………………………………. 17 2.9 The Debates ………………………………………………………………………. 19 2.10 Chequebook Journalism and the Guiding Principles ………….. 22 2.10.1 Truth‐telling …………………………………………………………… 22 2.10.2 Minimising Harm ……………………………………………………. 23 2.10.3 Acting Independently …………………………………………….. 24 2.10.4 Accountability ………………………………………………………… 25 2.11 South African Codes of Ethics regarding Chequebook Journalism ………………………………………………………………………… 25 2.12 A Brief History and Overview of Chequebook Journalism …. 27 2.12.1 International Overview ………………………………………….. 27 2.12.2 Local Overview ………………………………………………………. 28 vii Chapter 3 METHOD 3.1 Introduction ………………………………………………………………………. 31 3.2 Part One ……………………………………………………………………………… 31 3.3 Challenges of Interviews …………………………………………………….. 33 3.4 Part Two ……………………………………………………………………………… 34 3.5 Challenges of Focus Groups ………………………………………………… 36 3.6 Limitations ………………………………………………………………………….. 37 Chapter 4 FINDINGS: INTERVIEWS 4.1 Introduction ……………………………………………………………………….. 38 4.2 Paying for Stories ……………………………………………………………….. 39 4.3 Paying for Videotape ………………………………………………………….. 42 4.4 Second‐Hand Payments ……………………………………………………… 48 4.5 Paying for Exclusives …………………………………………………………… 48 4.6 Paying in Impoverished Areas …………………………………………….. 50 4.7 Paying Consultants …………………………………………………………….. 51 4.8 Paying for Travel Expenses …………………………………………………. 53 4.9 When the Station Pays ………………………………………………………. 55 4.10 Intimated Payments …………………………………………………………… 56 4.11 Paying in Third World Countries/Conflict Zones …………………. 57 4.11.1 Paying for Access ………………………………………………… 59 4.11.2 Paying Fixers ………………………………………………………. 61 4.11.3 Paying for Passage …………………………………………….. 63 4.11.4 Paying for Accreditation …………………………………….. 65 Chapter 5 FINDINGS: FOCUS GROUPS 5.1 Introduction ……………………………………………………………………….. 66 5.2 Challenges ………………………………………………………………………….. 67 5.3 Tainted Information vs. News as a Commodity ………………….. 68 5.4 Paying for Time/Risk/Service ……………………………………………… 73 5.5 Chequebook Journalism and the Public Interest …………………. 74 5.6 Paying for Videotape vs. Paying for a Story …………………………. 76 5.7 Disclosure of Payment ………………………………………………………... 77 5.8 Paying for Passage in Third World Countries/Conflict Zones .. 78 viii Chapter 6 ANALYSIS OF FINDINGS 6.1 Introduction ……………………………………………………………………….. 79 6.2 Paying for Stories ……………………………………………………………….. 79 6.3 Paying for Videotape ………………………………………………………….. 81 6.4 Second Hand/Intimated Payments …………………………………….. 84 6.5 Paying Consultants …………………………………………………………….. 86 6.6 Working in Third World Countries/Conflict Zones ……………… 87 6.7 Competition ………………………………………………………………………. 88 6.8 A Market Approach ……………………………………………………………. 91 6.9 Disclosure of Payment …………….…………………………………………. 93 6.10 Differences between Audience and Journalists’ Views……….. 94 6.11 Reciprocity and Professionalism ………………………………………… 95 Chapter 7 CONCLUSION 7.1 Introduction ……………………………………………………………………….. 99 7.2 Audiences ….………………………………………………………………………. 99 7.3 Journalists ………………………………………………………………………….. 100 7.4 Original Questions ……………………………………………………………… 100 SOURCES ……………………………………………………………………………........ 102 REFERENCES ……………………………………………………………………………… 104 1 Chapter 1 Introduction 1.1 Introduction Chequebook journalism, or paying for stories, is an issue that has long prompted passionate debate, specifically in the Western world. So rampant has the practice become in television journalism in America that iconic journalist Walter Cronkite caustically suggested that broadcasters be required to note, on screen, how much they had paid for the story. (Prato, 1994) In the United Kingdom it is the press that has been tarred with this brush, at times even being censured by the law. (Higham, 2003) The debate has recently been discussed by the South African media and public, probably for the first time ever, in the wake of the ongoing speculation about how The Sunday Times sourced former Health Minister, Manto Tshabalala‐Msimang’s health files, and whether they had been paid for. The Sunday Times, through its lawyer, has simply stated that “it did not pay one cent for access to the records and regards the practice of paying for information and stories as unethical.” (“Sanef outraged by action against editor.” 2007) Why is paying for stories an issue? Why would The Sunday Times regard this practice as unethical? If one follows the debates in America and the UK, it is clear that this is the thin end of the wedge, and discourse is critical, not only amongst journalists but with the public as well. Journalism as a profession is threatened by such customs, yet codes of conduct are disappointingly vague. Chequebook journalism and the contiguous issues of exchanging money for stories will be investigated in this paper, providing insight into an area of South African journalism that has not been explored. 2 1.2 Aim The aim of this research report is to examine the issue of paying sources for stories. It will also investigate adjacent monetary matters such as paying consultants, paying for videotape, paying expenses, etc. to determine whether they have the potential to affect the credibility and standards of journalism. Three South African television actuality programs have been chosen to determine in what way and how frequently it happens. This research will ascertain whether there is a market; how often and if it is applied; when journalists themselves feel an ethical line is crossed. It will also investigate whether the audiences are told; indeed, how acceptable the practice is with audiences. 1.3 Research Questions 1. What are the ethical considerations amongst the producers in three South African television current affairs programs with regard to paying for stories, and the morally ambiguous issues surrounding chequebook journalism? 2. In what circumstances have
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