Misinformation

As Kelly McBride and Tom Rosenstiel write in The New Ethics of Journalism: Principles for the 21st Century (2014), ethical decision making in the process of making media is a production of meaning that is shaped by shifting political, economic, and technological conditions that necessarily require media makers to consistently evaluate and reevaluate ethics in the context of what the Society of Professional Journalists has defined as journalism’s singular purpose, to “seek truth and report it.” While many news organizations have established codes of ethics,  journalists and other media makers are constantly faced with a wide range of ethical and legal dilemmas and decisions, grappling with ethical imperatives, legal concerns, and professional norms.
 

Guides, Reports & Codes

• Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Code of Ethics and Other Codes of Ethics curated by SPJ 
  The Society of Professional Journalists describes its mission as “encouraging the free practice of journalism and stimulating high standards of ethical behavior” and its Code of Ethics is founded on its members’ belief “that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy.” The organization’s Code of Ethics is founded on four principles: “seek truth and report it; minimize harm; act independently; be accountable and transparent.” The SPJ’s curated list of other ethics codes includes those from news outlets in the US and abroad and news organizations.
• Declaration on Fundamental Principles concerning the Contribution of the Mass Media to Strengthening Peace and International Understanding, to the Promotion of Human Rights and to Countering Racialism, Apartheid and Incitement to War This UNESCO Declaration outlines the mass media’s central role in “the strengthening of peace and international understanding, the promotion of human rights and the countering of racialism, apartheid and incitement to war.”
• The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) Global Charter of Ethics for Journalists was adopted at the 30th IFJ World Congress in Tunis in 2019 and “specifies the guidelines of conduct for journalists in the research, editing, transmission, dissemination and commentary of news and information, and in the description of events, in any media whatsoever.” It specifies journalists’ responsibilities about issues such as privacy, sources, freedom of the press, and journalistic independence.
• It may be instructive to examine individual newsroom codes of ethics both to compare how they address key issues such as source-journalist relationships and journalists’ relationships to political expression, but also how codes of ethics reflect the organizational values.  Some examples include: Ethical Journalism: A Handbook of Values and Practices and Guidelines on Integrity and Code of Conduct from the New York Times; the NPR Ethics Handbook; the BBC’s Editorial Values and Standards; the Guardian Editorial code of practice and guidance; and The Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA) code of ethics.
• Why Should I Tell You?: A Guide to Less-Extractive Reporting by the Center for Journalism Ethics, University of Wisconsin-Madison.  A brief guide on reporting on vulnerable communities, created from interviews with journalists working in “traditional accountability reporting, solutions journalism and engagement reporting.”
• Dart Center Style Guide for Trauma-Informed Journalism (2021) From the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma, this comprehensive guide includes sections on Trauma Science and Psychology; Violence and Aftermath; Identity; and Community and Social Issues and is organized around the definitions and explanations of relevant key terms such as collective trauma, moral distress, and institutional betrayal.
   

Articles

• “The First Amendment, Fake News, and Filter Bubbles” in Social Media and the Public Interest: Media Regulation in the Disinformation Age Philip M. Napoli (2019)
• Alford, Fred. 2003. “Women as Whistleblowers.” Business & Professional Ethics Journal 22(1), 67-76
• Christensen, Christian. 2014. “WikiLeaks and the Afterlife of Collateral Murder.” International Journal of Communication 8, 2593-2602.
   

Videos & Films

• “Collateral Murder” (released 2010; footage from 2007) Titled “Collateral Murder” by Wikileaks, this video shows footage filmed from a US military Apache helicopter as it killed Reuters journalists Namir Noor-Eldeen and Saeed Chmagh, nine other men, and seriously wounded two children.
• “Citizenfour” (2017) This documentary by Laura Poitras examines Edward Snowden’s encounters with journalist Glenn Greenwald as he handed over documents showing mass surveillance by the National Security Agency (NSA). 

Case Studies

• “Friend or Foe?: WikiLeaks and the Guardian” This case study from the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism Case Studies Initiative examines the ethically complex relationship between Wikileaks and the Guardian.
• “A Controversial Apology” From the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), this study asks how a newspaper should respond when its coverage is described by those reported on as “traumatizing and invasive.”
• “Blurred Boundaries: public interest and privacy on social media” This case study weighs the public interest and public’s right to know with privacy concerns in the context of the circulation of questionable photographs on social media. From the collection Journalism Case Studies from Canada. 
   

Books