Journalists often face ethical issues and dilemmas in the course of their work. Here are some of the Ethical issues faced by journalists;
- Protecting Sources: To a journalist, sources are sacred. Ethical reporters will cultivate and protect sources for the sake of preserving their access and integrity. Some journalists have even risked jail time, rather than identify a source.
- Protecting Victims: Another basic rule you’ll encounter in newsrooms is that certain victims of crimes are not identifiable by name. Particularly when the victim is a child who may have been sexually abused. There are cases, however, when these rules are bent or broken. You may face these kinds of dilemmas when a victim’s right to privacy confronts the news value in play.
- Privacy vs. News Value: This kind of dilemma isn’t limited to situations like those above. In general, public figures like government officials and celebrities enjoy a lesser degree of privacy than average citizens. How do you know when a matter is too private to report on? What if an ordinary citizen is involved in a genuinely newsworthy story, but reporting on it may require the disclosure of compromising information? Journalists and editors often work together to balance an obligation to accurately report the news while also doing no harm.
- Conflicts of Interest: One of the pillars of journalism ethics is impartiality. News stories should be reported fairly, objectively, and without undisclosed conflicts of interest that could influence the reporter’s coverage.
- Legal Issues: Journalists must also consider potential legal issues such as defamation, privacy, accuracy of information, independence, copyright, access, and use of public records, third party comments and protecting sources.
These are just some examples of the ethical issues faced by journalists in their work.
