If you flip through any of the news channels that are on TV, you will get a wide range of news casting. From unwelcome editorials on stories to not enough information being made available, there is always something that is left to be desired from news programs.
There are many ways to report on a story. There are also many definitions of “truth” and how to report it. To really have a respectable reporter title, one must do all that they must to be truly objective and report only the facts of the story, while not adding any words that could place a hidden or unconscious meaning. What is interesting about this is that the Online News Association has taken it upon themselves to figure out just what good ethics means in the reporting world.
They really work on defining the jargon that is used in the journalism world. They have an open discussion and work to figure out a definition that is not only plausible and possible, but is also acceptable to the public and builds the notion that journalist and reporters should exclude any bias and be objective. The end result with a sort of “do-it-yourself” code of ethics in the journalism world.
One example of reporting that needs to apply this code of ethics is the reporting that is currently going on in Ferguson, Missouri. As the article Unethical Journalism can make Ferguson more dangerous reports, journalists were Tweeting the locations and actions of demonstrators. The journalists didn’t take any time to consider the consequences of their actions and words.
Nobody really took the time to think about what might happen to those who are demonstrating and get into an altercation with the police. Sending this information out can cause more lives lost than necessary. It may be time for journalists to start taking ethics classes themselves and learn how to avoid unwarranted consequences.