On July 6, 2005, a federal judge ordered Judith Miller, journalist for the The New York Times, to jail. Miller was involved in the exposure of Valerie Plume as a CIA operative. In questioning, Miller invoked reporter’s privilege by refusing to disclose the identity of her sources, fueling fire to a heavily debated ethical issue in the field of journalism (Pinguelo, “A Reporter’s Confidential Source…Revealed?”). Successful journalism tells the truth to a public who has the right to know it. Journalists have the responsibility to tell us a story laden with facts and the more important responsibility of revealing the source of their information, right? Not necessarily. The right of journalists to keep their sources private has been a long-standing debate. The ethics in this debate are blurry. On one hand, it may be extremely important to the issue at hand that the source of information be known, as an argument could lose credibility otherwise. On the other hand, the source has the right as an American and an individual to remain anonymous. Isn’t it enough that he or she came forward with information at all? Judith Miller’s case garnered public attention and is just one example of many instances that raise the same, consistently debated question- how far can journalists go in protecting their sources and under what circumstances does withholding the identity of a source become unethical for either party involved? The answer to this question is obscure, but solvable. Journalists should have the right to protect to identity of a source unless the information they possess is for the greater good of the public or the situation at hand.
Sometimes journalists must withhold information to reveal information. Doctors, lawyers, and even pries...
... middle of paper ...
...t Media. Huffington Post, November 2012. Web. 19 November 2013.
“First Amendment.” Cornell University Law School. Legal Information Institute, n.d. Web. 18 November 2013.
Pinguelo, Fernando M. “A Reporter’s Confidential Source…Revealed?” National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. July 2007. Web. 14 November 2013.
Reuters. “Katie Holmes Settles $50 Million defamation Lawsuit Against Star Magazine Over Drug Addict Story”. The Daily News, 28 April 2011. Web. 19 November 2013.
“The Reporter’s Privilege Compendium: An Introduction.” Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, n.d. Web. 15 November 2013.
Shepard, Alicia. “Deep Throat’s Legacy to Journalism”. NPR Books. 19 December 2008. Web. 14 November 2013.
Soghoian, Christopher. “When Secrets Aren’t Safe With Journalists”. The Opinion Pages. The New York Times, 26 October 2011. Web. 17 November 2013.
In Rushworth Kidder’s book “How Good People Make Tough Choices,” Kidder provides a series of different methods, codes and examples of what being an ethical journalist could mean. He gives examples of different situations where a person’s ethics are tested and what would be a good way to deal with these situations. He starts by explaining the difference between things that are right-versus-right dilemmas, and those that are right-versus-wrong dilemmas.
McCraw, David, and Stephen Gikow. “The End to a Unspoken Bargain? National Security and Leaks in a Post-Pentagon Papers World.” Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review 48.2 (2013): 473-509. Academic OneFile. Web. 5 Dec. 2013.
In conclusion, black reporters’ role in journalism and the way they were treated by whites changed as they helped the Civil Rights Movement progress. The dearth of African Americans in reporting reminds us of job inequalities today in other workplaces, and of injustice toward women seeking employment and equal pay. The issue of equal rights in journalism also raises the question: Why does our society still have a lower percentage of black people in journalism compared to the whole population? Ultimately, we must agree that people should not be judged by their racial background and that the inequalities of racism can cause differing perspectives to be lost. The evidence strongly suggests that black journalists advanced the Civil Rights Movement through their news reporting and magnanimous determination to overcome discrimination.
Stein, Harry H. "American Muckrakers and Muckraking: The 50-Year Scholarship," Journalism Quarterly, Spring 1979 v56 n1 pp 9-17
In comparing ethical issues surrounding the journalists in “All The President’s Men” and “Welcome To Sarajevo”, there are several ethical issues that the journalists experienced. Ethics are an important aspect of journalism, since journalists face a multitude of ethical issues within their industry. Therefore, there are ethical guidelines that journalists’ use called “The Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics” [SPJ Code of Ethics]. When analyzing how the journalists in “All The President’s Men” and “Welcome To Sarajevo”, one can refer to the SPJ Code of Ethics to observe the possible ethical issues the journalists experienced. The four main concepts in the SPJ Code of Ethics are: seek truth and report it, minimize harm, act independently,
...emain respectable in the journalistic field, it is imperative to abide by all constitutional laws and ethical values.
Wise, David. "Leaks and the law: the prosecution of Thomas Drake highlights the tension between government secrecy and the public's right to know" Smithsonian 2011: 90. Academic OneFile. Web. 27 Feb. 2014.
Bonila, Denise M., and Levy, Beth, Eds. The Power of the Press. H. W. Wilson, 1999.
A 25- year old woman named Reality Winner was charged with a $250,000 fine for committing a felony and facing 10 years in federal prison. She leaked classified documents from the government. There were two articles that released information on what happened regarding Winner’s arrest. One article titled, "Don't Leak Lightly”; Sharing Classified Information is Risky, Even if it's in the Public, was published by The Baltimore Sun. The second article titled, "NSA LEAK INVESTIGATION”: Suspect in NSA Leak Faces was published by The Atlanta Journal. Even though both of the articles were published on June 9, 2017, they discuss different points about Reality Winner’s arrest. Although both articles discuss the case of Reality Winner, there are differences in the focus and purpose of the two articles.
Woodward and Bernstein's undertaking constructed the cornerstone for the modern role of the media. The making of the movie about the Watergate Scandal and the ventures of the two journalists signify the importance of the media. The media’s role as intermediary is exemplified throughout the plot of the movie. The movie is the embodiment of journalism that guides future journalists to progress towards the truth, no matter what they are going up against. It was the endeavor of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein that led them to the truth behind the president’s men. They showed that not even the president is able to deter the sanctity of journalism in its search of truth. The freedom of speech, the freedom of the press, and people’s right to know account for the same truth that journalists pursue; the truth that democracy is alive and will persist to live on.
In this era of globalization, news reporting is no longer just a means of communications, but it has also developed into a tool for change. Prominent journalists like Julian Assange, Nick Davies, Sir Charles Wheeler and many more has changed the landscape and outcomes of information, war and news reporting itself. But Martin Bell has challenged the fundamentals of journalism that is to be balanced and impartial with what he calls ‘Journalism of Attachment’. He even coined the phrase, ‘bystanders’ journalism’ for continuing the tradition of being distant and detached (Bell 1997), which he criticizes “for focusing with the circumstances of violence, such as military formations, weapons, strategies, maneuvers and tactics” (Gilboa 2009, p. 99). Therefore it is the aim of this essay to explain whether it is ethical for reporters to practice what Martin Bell calls the Journalism of Attachment by evaluating its major points and its counterarguments, and assessing other notions of journalism such as peace journalism.
Sabato, Larry J. Feeding Frenzy: Attack Journalism and American Politics. Baltimore: Lanahan Publishers, Inc., 1991.
"Journalism Ethics Online Journalism Ethics Gatekeeping." Journalism Ethics for the Global Citizen. Web. 05 Dec. 2010. .
ProQuest Staff. "At Issue: Privacy and the Press." ProQuest LLC. 2014: n.pag. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 30 Jan. 2014.
Journalism: a profession under pressure? Journal of Media Business Studies, 6, 37-59. Scannell, P. (1995). The 'Secondary'. Social aspects of media history, Unit 9 of the MA in Mass. Communications (By Distance Learning).