Reporters need to balance emotional impulses with a healthy dose of skepticism. This cautious approach shouldn’t fall by the wayside just because something terrible has happened. In fact, it’s in the coverage of tragedies like the Paris attacks that we need this balance the most.
Year: 2015
Footage from the scene: Considerations for eye witness video
Unlike a time when visual information was identified, captured and distributed almost exclusively by professionals, the increasing use of content produced by eyewitnesses is unveiling the potential and peril of such footage. Questions about who …
Ethics in the News – Nov. 3
The Kansas City Royals win over the New York Mets last Tuesday not only hit off the 2015 World Series, but ignited a conversation about journalism ethics after media outlets reported the unexpected death of …
Marijuana reviews: Advocating vice?
Dining out at a restaurant, watching a show or buying a book—you can always refer to a review on a local newspaper before making the decision. Now you can do the same thing for getting …
Ethics in the News – Oct. 27
The World Health Organization said Monday the scientific link between processed meats and cancer is definitive. In the next breath, the organization said there’s strong evidence that red meat causes cancer. As this article explains, …
Ethics in the News – Oct. 20
In the wake of a report about the extent of philanthropic money given to education journalism, ethicists are discussing what the proper relationship between targeted money and journalism should look like. A new blog looking …
Ethics of robot journalism: How Automated Insights poses issues for data collection and writing
Algorithm journalism is now available for everyone. A beta Wordsmith, a program that creates journalism from data, was made available on the parent company’s website Tuesday morning, the company announced. But, one of the world’s …
Ethics in the News Oct. 13
A journalism ethics summit themed on traumatic event reporting is scheduled for Oct. 27 at the Center for Ethics in Journalism at the University of Arkansas. The summit, “Take Care of Yourself: an introduction to …
Rezaian Conviction: How to Protect Journos with Dual Citizenship
News editors need to think more carefully — ahead of time — about how they plan to protect these journalists, should their citizenship get them into trouble. Far too often the strategy for handling this persecution is reactive instead of proactive.
Ethics in the News Oct. 6
The deadly campus shooting Thursday at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon, that left 10 dead and others injured conjured up familiar ethics debates about reporting in post-tragedy environments. Notably, conversation circulated around the naming …