Global Media Ethics is the first comprehensive cross-cultural exploration of the conceptual and practical issues facing media ethics in a global world. A team of leading journalism experts investigate the impact of major global trends on responsible journalism. The first full-length, truly global textbook on media ethics; Explores how current global changes in media promote and inhibit responsible journalism; Includes relevant and timely ethical discussions based on major trends in journalism and global (...) class='Hi'>media; Questions existing frameworks in media ethics in light of the impact of global media; Contributors are leading experts in global journalism and communication. (shrink)

Today's digital revolution is a worldwide phenomenon, with profound and often differential implications for communities around the world and their relationships to one another. This book presents a new, explicitly international theory of media ethics, incorporating non-Western perspectives and drawing deeply on both moral philosophy and the philosophy of technology. Clifford Christians develops an ethics grounded in three principles - truth, human dignity, and non-violence - and shows how these principles can be applied across a wide range (...) of cases and domains. The book is a guide for media professionals, scholars, and educators who are concerned with the global ramifications of new technologies and with creating a more just world. (shrink)

The ninth edition of Media Ethics: Issues and Cases has been updated to reflect the most pressing ethical issues in media. Featuring 25 new cases on hot topic issues from fake news to drones and a new chapter on social justice, this authoritative case book gives students the tools to make ethical decisions in an increasingly complex environment.

Uses cinema both to depict a variety of situations in which questions of media ethics arise, and to illustrate classic and contemporary ethical theories.

Provides guiding principles and values for practising responsible global media ethics.

On e recent change in the Society of Professional journalists Code of Ethics emphasizes that journalists should consider minimizing harm to society. This emphnsis follows more than a decade of thinking by educators who have called for teaching journalism students moral philosophy and moral reasoning decision making models-models that generally examine potential harm that surrounds newsroom decisions. This study, a quasi-experiment, examines pretest and posttest results of 210 students in 9 sections of n mass media ethics class (...) taught over 6 different semesters. After taking the course, which emphasized moral reasoning, students were more likely to make decisions that minimized harm, while gaining certainty in their answers. Diflerences between news-editorial and public relntions students are noted. Essays written by the students support the finding that education in moral reasoning can be effective in the development ofstudent journalists and their sense ofresponsibility to society. (shrink)

How we understand, protect, and discharge our rights and responsibilities as citizens in a democratic society committed to the principle of political equality is intimately connected to the standards and behaviour of our media in general, and our news media in particular. However, the media does not just stand between the citizenry and their leaders, or indeed between citizens and each other. The media is often the site where individuals attempt to realise some of the most (...) fundamental democratic liberties, including the right to free speech. -/- Media Ethics, Free Speech, and the Requirements of Democracy explores the conflict between the rights that people exercise in, and through, the modern media and the responsibilities that accrue on account of its awesome and increasing power. The individual chapters—written by leading scholars from the US, UK, and Australia—address several recent events and controversial developments in the media, including Brexit, the rise of Trump, Lynton Crosby, Charlie Hebdo, dog-whistle politics, fake news, and political correctness. This much-needed philosophical treatment is a welcome addition to the recent literature in media ethics. It will be of interest to scholars across political and social philosophy, applied ethics, media and communication studies, and political science who are interested in the important issues surrounding the media and free speech and democracy. (shrink)

This volume explores the construction of an ethics for news media that is global in reach and impact.

This article examines the challenges surrounding the application of multicultural, outcomes-based curricula for teaching media ethics and communication ethics classes within a small journalism program. The main question to be answered here is: From the perspective of students, does it make a difference to employ a teaching model that is embedded in multicultural values, and rewards personal transformation and "measurable results"? An additional question is: From the perspective of instructors, how can we best assess student learning and (...) personal growth in fields as "subjective" and intangible as communication ethics and media ethics? (shrink)

John Corner, Philip Schlesinger and Roger Silverstone , International Media Research – a critical surveyMatthew Kieran , Media Ethics.

This well researched text integrates information regarding historical perspectives of the media, journalism and ethics issues, and includes current discussions concerning the functions of the media, relevant contextualised ethical and legal frames of reference and cultural implications. Media Ethics focuses on theoretical frameworks as well as on practical implementation and how to integrate the two.

Media organizations are simultaneously key elements of an effective democracy and, for the most part, commercial entities seeking success in the market. They play an essential role in the formation of public opinion and the influence on personal choices. Yet most of them are commercial enterprises seeking readers or viewers, advertising, favorable regulatory decisions for their media, and other assets. This creates some intrinsic difficulties and produces some sharp tensions within media ethics. In this article, we (...) examine such tensions - in theory and practice. We then consider the feasibility of introducing an ethics regime to the media industry - a regime that would be effective in a deregulated environment in protecting public interest and social responsibility. In the article, we also outline a rationale and a methodology for the institutionalization of an acceptable and workable media ethics regime that aims to protect the integrity of the industry in a future of undoubtedly increasing commercial pressure. (shrink)

Issues surrounding ethics in journalism are presented from a variety of viewpoints.

In response to recent scholarship on the need for universal professional values, a call that has intensified in the post-9/11 world, this article reports how journalists in Asia and the Middle East conceptualize universal professional values and the possible impact of a universal ethics code. In general, the journalists interviewed for this study were suspicious of a Western-imposed set of values or a code. However, they agreed on a core set of values, ones that de-emphasized truth telling in relation (...) to respect and the need to maintain a community. They also emphasized that different political systems make the implementation of a universal code problematic. However, there was great agreement on the need for such discussion within the profession and on the commonalities such discussion reveals. (shrink)

This chapter contains sections titled: Deception and Dishonesty A Right to Know? Media Bias Is Neutrality a Virtue?

In this article we consider the value and effective use of ethics courses and case study pedagogy, analyze media ethics cases in 3 textbooks, support changing primary actors in many future text case studies, and call for the addition of ethical issues most relevant to the professional positions students will hold after graduation.

The agricultural communicator is a key link in transmitting information to farmers. If agricultural communicators' ethics are compromised, the resulting biases in news production could have serious detrimental effects on the quality of information conveyed to farmers. But, to date, agricultural communicators' perceptions of ethical problems they encounter at work has not been examined. This study looks at the dimensions of ethical concerns for topics area (agricultural) journalists as defined by practitioners. To determine these dimensions, we sent open ended (...) questionnaires (50 percent response rate) to members of two professional agricultural journalist associations: the Newspaper Farm Editors of America and the American Agricultural Editors' Association.Agricultural communicators overwhelmingly focus on one specific threat to objectivity—advertising pressure. Both NFEA and AAEA respondents indicated that agricultural journalists' responses to advertising pressure adversely affected the entire profession. The responses indicated that agricultural writers were concerned with the different types of pressures and the effects of advertising pressure on the industry as a whole. NFEA and AAEA respondents mentioned both indirect pressure, “freebies,” conferences, trips and press releases from advertising or public relations sections of agri-business firms, and direct pressures from advertisers, salesmen and publishers. The respondents were clearly more comfortable when newspaper policy protected them from advertising pressure and when they had techniques to reduce this pressure. The editors' and reporters' perceptions of advertising pressure clearly indicates that advertising abuses are a clear and present danger and one worthy of far more attention than it has previously received. (shrink)

This multidisciplinary collection explores the ethics of social media use during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a focus on misinformation, truth, well-being, and authenticity.

This handbook is one of the first comprehensive research and teaching tools for the developing area of global media ethics. The advent of new media that is global in reach and impact has created the need for a journalism ethics that is global in principles and aims. For many scholars, teachers and journalists, the existing journalism ethics, e.g. existing codes of ethics, is too parochial and national. It fails to provide adequate normative guidance for (...) a media that is digital, global and practiced by professional and citizen. A global media ethics is being constructed to define what responsible public journalism means for a new global media era. Currently, scholars write texts and codes for global media, teach global media ethics, analyse how global issues should be covered, and gather together at conferences, round tables and meetings. However, the field lacks an authoritative handbook that presents the views of leading thinkers on the most important issues for global media ethics. This handbook is a milestone in the field, and a major contribution to media ethics. (shrink)

Media Ethics has been designed as a textbook for under- and post-graduate students of Mass Communication and Journalism courses. It discusses key ethical issues in the light of the new face of journalism and the dynamic changes that are taking place in media today.

Introduction -- What is the current state of media ethics? -- Should telling the truth take precedence over other ethical concerns? -- Should journalists avoid actions that compromise objectivity? -- How have new technologies affected media ethics?

This chapter provide an introductory portrait of global media ethics as an evolving discipline in broad strokes—its motivating questions, its distinct concerns and methods, how the discipline is related to other forms of ethics, and why we need a global media ethics. Since our global world is linked by many forms of media, the chapter argues that we need an accompanying global media ethics that challenges the use of media to promote (...) racism, xenophobia, extreme nationalism, and the denial of human rights. The chapter explores the types of research and writing that comprise global media ethics and concludes with an outline of how a global media ethics can be realized in practice. (shrink)

This webliography has several functions: for teaching faculty to consult as a tool to aid in enhancing the media ethics curricula; contribute to the scholarly exchange of ideas; and perhaps cultivate a new awareness and direction for exploring secondary and tertiary nonprint sources involving ethics and mass media.

Between Summits I and II, media ethics established its legitimacy, summarized into recommendations for the field's future fluorescence. This history points to the challenges through which media ethics moves to another order of magnitude. A historical map of media ethics scholarship since 1980 divides into 5 domains, and each is introduced: theory, social philosophy, religious ethics, technology, and truth. From this content analysis of the literature, an agenda emerges for research and academic study (...) that can raise media ethics to a higher level. (shrink)

Each story is presented as a narrative, so readers can ponder: What would I do if this happened to me? When they've finished the book, they'll feel prepared with an array of theoretical and practical approaches for thinking on their feet.

Digital media and connected technologies have brought about some new ethical challenges to the surface. Digital media ethics is the scientific and systematic study of ethical attitudes and problems in relation to the use of digital media. This paper discusses the role of digital media ethics in modern school education. First, it is argued that digital media ethics is best perceived as a dimension of digital competence more generally. Since the development of (...) students’ digital competence is one of the central ambitions in modern school education, there is good reason to teach digital media ethics in school. Then, the authors go on to argue that there are at least three potential benefits from teaching digital media ethics: (i) students will increase their digital competence; (ii) students will develop their ability to use digital and connected technologies such as mobile phones for learning; and (iii) students will be helped in living a good life. Finally, the authors offer some reflections on challenges that might arise when digital media ethics is integrated in school education. (shrink)

When the world's first face transplant was performed in France in 2005, the complex medical procedure and accompanying worldwide media attention sparked many ethical issues, including how the media covered the story. This study uses framing theory to examine what happens when media ethics intersect with bioethics by analyzing French, American, and British media coverage on the transplant and its aftermath. This study looks at how this story was framed and which bioethical issues were focused (...) upon. The media ethical implications of these findings are then discussed. By doing so, this article attempts to contribute to the debate on how complex medical stories with bioethical components can be reported in an ethical manner. (shrink)

In light of a history of an unethical news media system used by the state as an instrument of oppression, media ethics in South Africa is intended to uphold the foundational tenets of journalism and play a pivotal role in addressing issues of diversity, equity, and social justice. Most recently, the 2021 Inquiry into Media Ethics and Credibility report instructed media watchdogs, such as the South African Press Council, to track data concerning ethical breaches (...) based on the potential that such data can contribute to transparency and accountability. This study examines the trends in ethical issues raised in rulings by the South African Press Council (PCSA) over the period 2018–2022. Our analysis found that most of the South African news media publications registered with PCSA have a good track record when it comes to upholding ethical standards. However, a few publications have a disproportionate share of the complaints against them. (shrink)

This article reports findings of a survey of college students in 3 educational settings regarding student perceptions of mass media ethics pedagogy, including course objectives, value systems examined, the use of civil law and/or ethics codes as standards of media ethics, and teaching techniques used in media ethics instruction. Of particular interest was how closely student expectations correlate with previous research findings indicating instructor techniques and goals. The results revealed several areas in which (...) instructor goals and the student rankings were not in accordance, including marked discrepancies between professor and student views on ethical standards employed, values systems examined, and teaching techniques preferred. The study concluded that most students would respond well to a stand-alone media ethics course employing a variety of teaching methods. Respondents felt the course should not emphasize universal ethics, but should respect pluralistic principles and examine various cultural interpretations of media ethics. (shrink)

ABSTRACTIncreasing attention is being directed at the impact of fake news on democratic societies across the globe. Scholars in a range of fields are attempting to determine who is behind fake news...

This chapter contains sections titled: References and Further Reading.

(1997). Considering moral sensitivity in media ethics courses and research: An essay review by Robert F. Potter. Journal of Mass Media Ethics: Vol. 12, No. 1, pp. 51-57. doi: 10.1207/s15327728jmme1201_4.

This article provides a review and a perspective on the interaction between neuroscience and the media. It situates public discourse and the communication of neuroscience in an intricate web of social expectations and ethical responsibilities that converge and diverge between different stakeholders such as academic researchers, public sponsors of research, and the interested public. The article highlights some of the key ethical and social challenges that emerge when neuroscientists interact with the media. This study shows that the (...) class='Hi'>media manifests important shortcomings in matters of neuroscience explanations and fosters some unrealistic expectations for the outcomes of neuroscience. It concludes with attention to some of the research and practical questions that need further attention in matters of ethics and communication in neuroscience. This article relies on a number of assumptions that need to be acknowledged from the onset. They explain the view that the communication of neuroscience is of crucial importance for neuroethics. (shrink)

This book addresses current threats to citizenship and democratic values posed by the spread of post-truth communication. The contributors apply research on moral, civic, and epistemic virtues to issues involving post-truth culture. The spread of post-truth communication affects ordinary citizens' commitment to truth and attitudes toward information sources, thereby threatening the promotion of democratic ideals in public debate. The chapters in this volume investigate the importance of helping citizens improve the quality of their online agency and raise awareness of the (...) risks social media poses to democratic values. The book moves from two initial chapters that provide historical background and overview of the present post-truth malaise, through a series of chapters that feature mainly diagnostic accounts of the epistemic and ethical issues we face, to the complexities of virtue-theoretic analyses of specific virtues and vices. Virtues, Democracy, and Online Media will be of interest to scholars and advanced students working in virtue ethics, epistemology, political philosophy, and media studies. (shrink)

This chapter defends the project of global media ethics against the skeptics. The overall question for this chapter can be stated as follows: Is the creation of global media ethics as a whole a realistic and desirable goal? The chapter proceeds by exploring, and responding to, the major criticisms of the project and its idea of moral globalism. It then presents a realistic conception of what can be achieved by global media ethics. The chapter (...) concludes that it is both rational and practically worthwhile to support the project of global media ethics. (shrink)

Utilitarianism has dominated media ethics for a century. For Mill, individual autonomy and neutrality are the foundations of his On Liberty and System of Logic, as well as his Utilitarianism. These concepts fit naturally with media ethics theory and professional practice in a democratic society. However, the weaknesses in utilitarianism articulated by Ross and others direct us at this stage to a dialogic ethics of duty instead. Habermas's discourse ethics, feminist ethics, and communitarian (...) ethics are examples of duty ethics rooted in the dialogic relation that enable us to start over intellectually. (shrink)

Johnson conceptualizes the social responsibilities of digital media platforms by describing two ethical approaches: one emphasizing the discursive freedom of platform-users, the other emphasizing protecting users from harmful posts. These competing concerns are on full display in the current debate over platforms’ obligations during the COVID-19 pandemic. While Johnson argues both approaches are grounded in democracy, we argue that democratic commitments transcend the freedom/harm dichotomy. Instead, a commitment to democracy points toward social media companies’ responsibilities to structure their (...) platforms in ways that facilitate perspectival diversity and collective deliberation. (shrink)

American media, in the face of the Grenada invasion ?lockout?; and the Westmoreland/Sharon libel actions, seem to be running scared. No longer are there accusations of ?imperial media,?; as newspapers, radio, and television news consumption decline. Media response is to look to ethics. Media should learn that corporate consciousness is less important in guiding the medium than is service to public or audience.

Codified ethics for journalists in Australia has a long history, almost as long as that in the United States. Unlike the United States, however, Australia has a unified code of ethics, that of the Australian Journalists' Association, which is generally accepted by the whole industry, both print and broadcast. But over the last 20 years, media consumers have shown they have a poor and declining view of the ethics of Australian journalists, despite the checks and balances (...) that exist. Recent signs, both from within and outside Australia, indicate growing dissatisfaction with the media, suggesting Australian journalists can expect increasing criticism of their behavior and mounting pressure on them to be more accountable. (shrink)

How many letters to the editor published in today's popular magazines discuss media ethics? How do the number of letters to the editor about media ethics compare with lettersfrom an earlier era? To find some answers, this article compares the number of letters to the editor about journalistic standards contained in all the letters published in 10 popular magazines between 1982 and 1992 with those of 10 popular magazines published between 1902 and 1912. Of almost 42,000 (...) letters to the editor published in 10 contemporary magazines studied here, roughly 3.5% discussed media ethics. In sharp contrast, a study of letters to the editor in the magazines published from 1902 to 1912 reveals a much higher percentage of readers' comments about journalistic ethics.This article explores the differences and asks why far fewer letters to the editor about journalism were published in the recent decade than in the past. (shrink)

Professionalism reduced to its central ideal involves the autonomy of an occupation to control its own practice. This ideal coincides with the most fundamental prerequisite of ethical behavior: the freedom to make ethical choices. This essay argues that professionalism has not provided journalists with the appropriate kind of autonomy for fully meaningful ethical behavior.

Two recurring ideologies are used to explore and explain differences in approach to media coverage and problems, both by those within the media and by critics outside the media. Models of Left (individualism, liberty, human happiness) and Right (achievement, maintenance of norms) are used to map three contemporary journalism issues: professionalism, journalist as Good Samaritan, and objective reporting. Each readily lends itself to ideological and para-ideological analysis. Ideological constructs made a significant contribution to the mapping and assessing (...) of ethical and professional media problems. (shrink)