Transcript Meeting Ethics and Legal Responsibilities

Meeting Ethics and Legal
Responsibilities
Vocabulary
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ethics
“composite character”
slander
right to reply
plagiarism
libel
privileged statements
fair comment
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prior restraint
credibility
objectivity
in loco parentis
Forum Theory
Columbia Journalism Review
• the watching the watchdog
• “One of the most awesome changes of our
time is the increase in the power and
pervasiveness of the news media. That’s
why the question of standards is so
important. Around the world there is
growing public concern about the
performance and behavior of the news
media. The bottom line is that the public no
longer trusts us. And for journalism, that is
crucial. Trust is our most important
product.
Criticism of the news media
• viewed as rude, arrogant, and uncaring-only interested in getting the story
• suspicious of the giant news organization
and big newspaper chains
• media is inaccurate
• media is bias
What is the media’s political
function in society
• watchdogs of the government
• give audience the information upon which
to make political decisions
• fight attempt of government to to business
behind closed doors
• watch for scandal and wrongdoing
• scrutinize budgets
Economic function
– give public information about products, goods,
services, and events
– advertising
• Sentry function
– describe the issues in our changing lives,
Internet, censorship
– things that are likely to happen
Record-keeping function
• accurate record of local national and world
news
elections
bills passed in congress
oil prices
births
deaths
Entertainment function
• comics
• feature stories
• pictures
Marketplace function
• a forum for all sort of ideas
• community concerns
Agenda setting function
• “While journalists don’t tell you what to
think, they do tell you what to think about.”
• journalists have the power to determine
what we address as a nation
Evaluate your local newspaper
• Ask these questions
• Is it choked with self seeking publicity?
• Are local issues and problems ignored in
favor of Associated Press stories from afar?
• Is government at the local level covered
thoroughly?
• Is there a lively editorial page with letters to
the editor?
• Do the editorials treat local issues or
national and world ?