The Radio-Television News Directors Association: Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct

News organizations that report on stories in a fair, balanced and ethical manner are essential to the functionality of this nation. A citizen’s ability to make well-informed decisions hinges on a news organization’s ability to relay the most accurate information regarding the state of the nation, the changing condition of communities, and adjustments in the government. Journalism is no longer a one-sided conversation. Journalism is an interactive process that allows for readers and viewers to create a dialogue with journalists by utilizing mediums such as social networking sites and comment sections. Audiences have a say in what stories get reported and how news stories are presented to the masses. When news organizations fail to cover all

In the Journalists’ Code of Ethics is implemented to the media to keep the reporting of all journalists fair and non-judgemental. The professional standards

Journalism and technology go together especially in our modern-day society. Ethics is a guideline that journalists uphold their obligation to the public and their profession to report the truth. Unfortunately, in this digital age, we have the resource that can verify one’s original work but also to plagiarize. Journalists should be honest, fair and courageous in gathering, reporting and interpreting information. Journalists should also test the accuracy of information from all sources and exercise care to avoid inadvertent error (“Society of Professional Journalists: Code of Ethics”, 1996). In this paper I will discuss what role did digital technology play in the Jayson Blair scandal, how can it be regulated, and what guidelines can be put in place to prevent future incidents.

some of the most important duties of journalists. Many believe that the purpose of the media is to

Public trust is at the heart of journalism. Such trust is built upon the credibility journalistic efforts. In the past, though mistakes have been made by even the most reputable of news providers, credibility was maintained and public trust in the journalist industry was steady. However, with the Internet taking its first infant steps into the reporting world, concern is being vocalized that public trust in journalism will be damaged by mavericks, such as Matt Drudge, who, without any foundation in reporting seek to tell the entire world every little secret he can dig up. And he’s been wrong.

In today’s day and age, mass media has completely changed the way in which we consume news. The truthfulness of the millions of blogs and web pages makes it hard to trust what is true and what is not. Newspapers are often an overlooked form of news, which is surprising considering that it is a accurate, curated source of media. What sets newspapers apart from all the countless blogs and web pages is the set of ethics that the reporters and editors are required to follow. In State of Play Cal McCaffrey, a reporter for the Washington Globe, did not act in accordance to the code of ethics. McCaffrey knowingly broke the law whilst trespassing, clearly knew McCaffrey had a conflict of interest, and unethically recorded someone while falsely promising anonymity.

Objectivity is an important factor in the world of journalism. Some journalist falls short of objectivity while others seem may seem to contain too much of it, abandoning the artistry of persuasion. Today we live in a world where our own president claims the mainstream news outlets publish "fake news. " It leaves us to wonder whether some factors affect the journalists' reporting. Whether this is ethically correct is also something to ask ourselves.

I would informally like to introduce myself as your average concerned American citizen. As an editor, I am sure you receive letters often from citizens about their opinion of the many issues or events that have been reported. Often times, in regards to news or any important information; it is hard to determine which is true and which is false because of the source of information. For example, reading the newspaper versus watching the news on television, which is more believable? The news is the most common source of information in the community in regards to crime and other disturbances. It gives the viewer more insight and detail on the issue because; it is usually being presented at the time of occurrence. However, in contrast, the newspaper seems to have its own version.

The first and most important principle in the Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics is to seek truth and report it. Glass violated this principle in every way that one possibly could. Glass wrote 41 pieces while working with the New Republic, 27 of those pieces were fabricated in some form or fashion. The piece that brought light to Glass’s

To fully understand we much focus on these three aspects of the issue. Above all, it is the media's job to publish what is true. It is its job to give the audience news and that of truthful news. The most serious concern with the media is that what they reveal to the audience must be true because as a society we are greatly influenced by what we read, hear, and see through the press. This is why libel is more serious than privacy issues. Publishing false or inaccurate information directly is the biggest, and most devastating thing a journalist or media can do. That is the

Nowadays journalists have the responsibility to report facts as accurately, objectively, and disinterestedly as is humanly possible. ‘’The, honest, self-disciplined, well-trained reporter seeks to be a propagandist for nothing but the truth’’ (Casey, 1944b).

The duty of journalists is to tell the truth. Journalism means you go back to the actual facts, you look at the documents, you discover what the record is, and you report it that way. — Chomsky 2008

Undoubtedly, impartiality in journalism is of the most disputable questions among media experts from all over the world. In times when the power of new media is increasing from day to day, it is really important to realize which influence can journalists have on society’s opinion. People share news extremely fast nowadays – they can do this just with one click within seconds. Information became a virus. Such a tendency raises a responsibility which author has – because there is always a feedback. And if you accidentally do something wrong, or post unchecked information, or blame somebody without strong proofs, people will write you back. Or, which is worse, they will share your article with negative comments among all their friends in social networks – and this will seriously damage your reputation. That is why responsibility is so important in journalism. So is impartiality. But is it achievable, especially by an individual journalist? Generally, yes.

The belief that journalism is in decline has triggered major alarms, because society needs an informational environment that is easily available to all citizens such as newspapers. There is a large body of journalist that suggests that if television has taken over from the press as our main source of news this may limit our capacity to learn about public affairs; newspapers are believed to be far more effective than television at conveying detailed information necessary to understand complex and detailed issues. There is also widespread concern that if journalism fails as a profession it will not be able to reach large sections of the community, particularly younger or less educated readers. This may reinforce a growing gap among citizens between the information that they receive.

The most significant advantage of professional journalism is authority and accuracy. We are able to read the news from television, newspapers, radio, all of these news are from professional journalists. They through interviews, collecting materials, several times to verify the news before publishing. These news are more credible than citizen journalism. Lindner et al (2015, p. 555 ) explain