Journalism Ethics

Process

Mindwarmer

Step 1:
Break the class up into groups and present each with one of the following scenarios: 

1. The editor of a music blog sees several smaller sites sharing  rumors that a famous musician was detained on suspicion of drug possession while traveling abroad. The editor doesn’t have access to police reports. All she can find  is a local news report in a language she doesn’t understand that mentions the musician’s name.  She  runs the piece through Google Translate, which seems to confirm the rumors. The editor publishes a story on the “allegations” that  notes that they have not formally been verified. 
2. A local reporter is combing through court documents relating to a sexual assault lawsuit filed against a state congressman. In the unredacted documents, she finds an accuser’s name, phone number, and home address. She independently verifies the information she has found and ensures that her story is factually correct before going to print. Her outlet publishes the story with the accuser’s name and neighborhood in the paper’s politics section, but withholds the street address and phone number. 
3. A podcast company focused on maternal health is in precarious financial shape and is in the midst of negotiating underwriting support from a baby food company. A freelancer pitches an investigative episode that examines the use of potentially harmful GMOs in baby food, but the key expert in the pitch is associated with an unfamiliar research institute. The company declines the pitch and signs the contract.  
4. A freelance writer publishes a magazine article exposing corruption at a powerful multinational corporation. In interviews about the project, the writer explains that he found the story while on staff at a national newspaper that didn’t support the project.  He implies that the newspaper may have been scared of the ramifications of publishing the story. The newspaper’s editor in chief contradicts this account, suggesting the idea wasn’t fully formed when it crossed his desk and was sent back for more work. 

You can also use scenarios from the SPJ Ethics Case Studies.

Step 2:
Ask each group to discuss their scenario for a few minutes and identify what ethical dilemmas come up in the scenario, and which ones concern them most. 

Step 3:
Come back together as a class and have a representative of each group share their concerns with the class. What questions about journalistic ethics do you have?

Exercise

Step 1:
Distribute copies of SPJ’s Code of Ethics.

Break into 4 groups. Assign each group one section of the codes, but do not tell the whole class which group has what category:

• Seek truth and report it;
• Minimize harm;
• Act independently;
• Be accountable and transparent.

Step 8:
Give each group 10 minutes to brainstorm a scenario that would challenge their ethical category. Write out their scenario and be prepared to share it.

Step 9:
One at a time, have the students read their scenarios aloud to the class. Have the rest of the class guess which code their scenario is contending with. Have the whole class work to amp up/improve the scenario to challenge the code even more (40 minutes)

Step 10:
Discussion: What’s a good way to remind yourself of these things as you’re working on stories? How would you explain the code of ethics to a family member or your roommate? 

POSSIBLE EXTENSION

Find a contemporary example of reporting that has challenged one of these codes

HAVE QUESTIONS? FEEDBACK?

We’d love to hear about your experience using these activities in your classroom, get your thoughts on what we could improve. Email us at resources@journalismdesign.com or fill out this form.