Ethical
issues in media have likely existed since media’s inception. For journalists,
the best course to take is not always easy to discern. The search for an answer
– and there may be more than one – may be eased, however, in reading where
others’ experiences took them.
Tony
Harcup’s 2007 book, The Ethical
Journalist, is a worthwhile read for any journalist. It offers numerous
cases reflecting the best ethical practices as well as the worst and those
in-between. Harcup, a former newsman who is now a media professor with the
University of Sheffield in Great Britain, draws primarily from ethical issues
encountered by the British media for his book while also incorporating some
from the United States and other countries. It is a well-researched book, with
plenty of additional sources recommended for further reading listed at the end
of each chapter.
Harcup
wrote about the need for research into journalistic issues in a recent commentary
for the British journal, Journalism
Education.
“If
we conceive of journalism as just another job … then it is not difficult to
conclude that it could function perfectly well without academic scrutiny or
insight. But if we feel that (at least some) journalism has (at least
potentially) an important role to play in society, then understanding a bit
more about how it works must be worthwhile; and using academic research methods
is one (but not the only) way of helping us achieve a deeper understanding.” (Harcup,
2012)
In
line with Harcup’s feelings about academic research, The Ethical Journalist provides a comprehensive look at journalism
ethics. In his review, Chris Atton writes that Harcup’s book is “a presentation
that is informed by history, that takes account of contemporary
political-economic views of journalism and that recognizes diversity and
difficulty in ethical practices.” (Atton, 2008)
Chapters
cover topics ranging from how victims are covered to source protection. One of
the most interesting cases includes Harcup delving into the British version of how
media uncovered there were, in fact, no weapons of mass destruction found in
Iraq. In his “Can I Quote You On That?” chapter, Harcup details how a
journalist’s “off-the-record” meeting with a government official led to a firestorm
of coverage, the same official’s suicide and several inquiries that scrutinized
not only the government’s role but also the journalist’s role in the matter. As
part of his look at what happened, Harcup offers a bit of advice for any
journalist: “You might like to pause and think of that fact the next time you
are about to interview somebody: How would your notes stand up to such
scrutiny?” (P.72)
Ethical
questions continue to arise – and there is no reason to believe they will ever
disappear. What to do then? Harcup’s book notes how Great Britain (both
government and media) has sought to address those through the creation of the
Press Complaints Commission and its related Code of Practice, along with BBC
Editorial Guidelines and other journalism industry-related codes of conduct.
Still,
those are not a perfect mechanism nor do they provide a perfect answer to
ethical issues, Harcup would agree as he details in The Ethical Journalist issues that routinely arise with just the
PCC: “If the PCC is a customer complaints department, it is one that prides
itself on adjudicating very few of the thousands of complaints it receives.”
(P.113)
British
journalists are not alone in facing the tough questions about their profession.
Cases of plagiarism in U.S. media were recently catalogued by Craig Silverman
in a Poynter website article that calls for renewed discussion of ethical
issues in this nation. “This needs to be an initiative that cuts across organizations,
mediums and disciplines to serve all journalists,” Silverman writes, asking
that major journalism organizations such as the Society of Professional
Journalists and Associated Press Managing Editors “collaborate on a set of
unified best practices that can provide guidance to newsrooms large and small,
across mediums.” (Silverman, 2012)
There
becomes a fine balance between individual journalist responsibilities and
oversight from professional organizations and or government. And it becomes a slippery
slope when the government becomes too involved, some caution. “A free private
press underlies the democratic fabric of a country. It must be allowed to
operate freely, with little governmental interference,” write Yisrael Medad and
Eli Pollak in the Jerusalem Post. (Medad,
Pollak, 2012) Media must take responsibility for its actions and be willing to
“accept and deal with criticism” from an actively involved public, they write,
noting there should be accountability, transparency and studies of media
performance. (Medad, Pollak, 2012)
Ultimately,
for Harcup, the onus is on the individual journalist and then, to the next
extent, to his or her cohorts. “The ethos of this book is that to be good
journalists we need to be thinking journalists, or reflective practitioners. By
this I mean that journalists should be encouraged to reflect critically on our
job – both individually and collectively – while we are doing it.” (P.6) Harcup
further writes, “Ethical journalism is not only possible, it is essential; not
just for journalists’ sense of self-worth, but for the health and well-being of
society.” (P. 144)
“Ethics
are integral to being a good journalist,” Harcup writes, adding, “An ethical
journalist is one who cares: cares about accuracy, cares about people, cares
about journalism, cares enough to speak out, and cares enough to challenge preconceptions
and prejudices.” (P.144)
I
would highly recommend The Ethical
Journalist for others’ reading. It is an easy read and the case issues
within its pages carry enough detail to be interesting and informative. As Atton
noted in his review, “The Ethical
Journalist offers (a) highly readable and provocative introduction to
ethics that argues, to echo the title of its final chapter, ethical journalism
to be good journalism.” (Atton, 2008)
References (APA)
Atton, C. (2008). Book review: Tony Harcup, The
Ethical Journalist. London: SAGE, 2007 (http://libproxy.library.unt.edu:2472/content/30/6/917
ed.). London: Media, Culture & Society.
Harcup, T. (2007). The Ethical Journalist.
London: SAGE Publications Ltd.
Harcup, T. (2012). Confessions of a Hackademic.
Journalism Education, 1(1)
Medad, Y., & Pollak, E. (2012, September 23).
Media comment: Media ethics lessons from abroad. The Jerusalem Post
Silverman, C. (September 10, 2012). Journalism's
summer of sin marked by plagiarism, fabrication, obfuscation. Retrieved
September 23, 2012, from http://www.poynter.org/latest-news/regret-the-error/187335/journalisms-summer-of-sin-calls-for-leadership-transparency/
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