Journalists have an obligation to exercise their personal conscience (Kovach & Rosenstiel 231).
Ethics, dating all the way back to ancient Greece, is the study of the rational way to decide what is good for individuals or society. Ethics consists of our choices between competing moral principles (Philip Patterson and Lee Wilkins). A code of ethics can be found in literally all industries. That code of ethics is what keeps businesses in business. Journalism has a code of ethics as well but it “issues no profession-wide sanctions against violators of any of these ethical codes” (Willis 51).
So, why do journalists bother keeping a code of ethics if they, for lack of better terms, don’t get punished for violating them? In fact, it is ethics that worries journalists the most. They contemplate whether they have treated their sources with fairness and if any unnecessary harm was done. Ethics are what keep journalists up late at night because fairness and balance is what journalists value the most. Nonetheless, journalists voluntarily adhere to a code of ethics because in many lawsuits involving journalists, when attorneys prove that journalists violated the code of ethics, they lose credibility among audiences and their work is questioned due to honesty. Many people have regarded journalists to unethical as a whole because if they violate their code of ethics, what else have they violated?
As journalists, it is important that we follow a code of ethics because we have a “responsibility to voice [our] personal conscience out loud and allow others around [us] to do so as well” (Kovach & Rosenstiel 231).
Many news businesses have their own code of ethics such as The New York Times and The Los Angeles Times. But the most dominant code of ethics, which has been incorporated in all journalist’s personal code of ethics, is the one set by the members of the Society of Professional Journalists (Society of Professional Journalists). These include:
Seek the Truth and Report It: Journalists should be honest, fair, and courageous in gathering, reporting and interpreting information. This is what journalists do every day as part of their duty to citizens. Not only is it important that we seek the truth by verifying our sources and rechecking our facts, but also that we don’t fabricate our sources and our stories. Also, allow a diversity of ideas in your stories.
Minimize Harm: Ethical journalists treat sources, subjects and colleagues as human beings deserving of respect. Journalists are humans and so they need to treat their sources as humans. Journalists will be more in tune with their audiences and sources if they act with some humanity. Acting with humanity and humility will allow trust between the listener and the news gatherer.
Act Independently: Journalists should be free of obligation to any interest other than the public’s right to know. Journalism was built on democracy and the public’s interest. When journalists give their loyalties to lobbyists, organizations, and big companies, rather than presenting the news, there becomes a conflict of interest. One does not present the news but advocates a private interest.
Be Accountable: Journalists are accountable to their readers, listeners, viewers and each other. Journalists serve an audience, widely referred to as the public. What journalists put out there is what they consider to be of utmost importance so citizens can decide what to think about events happening around them. Whatever they decide to publish, not only should they carefully analyze the effect that it will have on their audience, but also they must take the responsibility oh what happens after what they publish.
It is important for journalists to have a personal code of ethics (a moral compass) and to use wise judgment when they gather and present the news. Journalists will maintain their credibility and audiences can expect a trust between them and the journalists. “Only in a newsroom in which all can bring their diverse viewpoints to bear will the news have any chance of accurately anticipating and reflecting the increasingly diverse perspectives and needs of American culture” (Kovach & Rosenstiel 231).
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