Journalism’s Values in the Digital Age

August 26, 2013Bill Mitchell, Poynter NewsU

Today’s Agenda1. Discussion of journalism values,

guiding principles2. Ethical decision-making as a

process3. News ethics in Southeast Asia4. Diversity as a value & a process5. Discussion of your assignments,

projects6. Your questions & suggestions

Housekeeping notes1. NewsU: Slides @ Slideshare.net2. NewsU: Session replay @ NewsU3. NewsU: Assignments4. All of you: Pen, paper, brief

writing5. All of you: Engagement6. All of you: Indonesian context7. All of you: Help w/ our

pronunciation

Why this session matters to you, personally

• Please give some thought to how you’ll complete the following two sentences (we’ll return to this at the end of the session today):

1. I stand for journalism that…2. As a journalist, I do my best to…

Why journalism values matter• Links directly to your own,

personal journalistic purpose• Improves the quality of your

journalism• Gives you a competitive edge• Makes your journalism work

more fun, less stressful

Ethical guiding principles (original three from Bob Steele):

1. Seek truth & report it as fully as possible

2. Act independently3. Minimize harm

Ethical guiding principles (new list by McBride, Rosenstiel):

• #1 Stays the same: Seek truth & report it as fully as possible

• Act independently is enlarged to Be transparent

• Minimize harm is enlarged to Engage community as an end, rather than as a means

Seek truth & report it as fully as possible:

• Be vigorous in your pursuit of accuracy

• Be honest, fair & courageous• Give voice to the voiceless• Hold the powerful accountable• Be accountable yourself

Be transparent

• Show how reporting was done & why people should believe it

• Be clear about your journalistic approach, e.g., independent inquiry or a particular point of view?

• Acknowledge & correct mistakes – and do so prominently!

Engage community as an end rather than as a means• Understand community needs• Transform journalism into

community dialog• Seek out competing perspectives• Seek publishing alternatives that

minimize harm

Why clarity about what you stand for matters so much

• What you stand for is the contract you make with three key stakeholders:• Your audiences• Your employers• Your sources

1 reason why clarity about what you stand for matters so much…

Similar but older (1972) example…

Ethical decision-making process

1. State your goal2. Articulate your journalistic

purpose3. Specify journalistic principles at

stake4. Identify principles that collide5. Identify stakeholders

Ethical decision-making process, continued

6. Describe at least 3 alternative approaches

7. Decide which approach you’ll take

8. Defend your approach in writing, including description of conflicting principles and options you considered

Using these three principles to assess two cases

• Role of truth-telling, transparency & community in:

1. Coverage of the mistress & son of the Argentine presidential candidate

2. Coverage of claims by Peruvian woman that a presidential candidate was the father of her daughter

Context for these principles for Indonesian journalists:

Context for these principles for Indonesian journalists, continued:

• Corruption (covered by journalists)

• Envelope journalism (corruption of journalists)

• Implications of fitnah for journalists

• Your examples…

Recent stories with ethical dimensions…

Recent stories with ethical dimensions, continued…

Diversity as a value & a process• Links directly to your own

purpose• Improves the quality of your

journalism• Gives you a competitive edge• Makes work more fun, less

stressful

How diversity fits with journalism’s guiding principles

• Report the truth as fully as possible

• Be transparent• Engage community as an end

rather than a means

Black, white: Looting vs. finding

Diversity issues in Indonesia

Diversity issues in Indonesia, continued

Why journalism values matter

to you, personally• We told you we’d return to this at

the end of the session! We hope some of you will share your version of #1 and/or #2 in the Chat Box below:

1. I stand for journalism that…2. As a journalist, I do my best to…

Additional resources NewsU webinar with Kelly McBride: http://www.newsu.org/new-ethics

Snopes discussion of looting vs. finding:http://www.snopes.com/katrina/photos/looters.asp

Questions, comments, suggestions?

Bill Mitchell, Poynter NewsUbmitch@gmail.com@bmitch on Twitter

Lauren Klingerlklinger@poynter.org@laurenklinger on Twitter

Thank YouRemember to visit Poynter’s NewsUwww.newsu.org

Journalism Training. Anytime. Anywhere. For Anybody.