What are some of the ethical problems faced by journalists? How are they resolved?

In journalism, because of the First Amendment, society has very few “rules” for journalists in spite of the special problems they face. Because of this, there are many ethical dilemmas and problems journalists are often faced with. Ethical problems faced by journalists include:

1. Deceit – such as being deceptive to get a story

2. Conflicts of interest

3. Friendship – such as covering stories that involve a personal acquaintance

4. Payola – temptations to accept payment for a story from someone other than from their employer

5. Freebies – accepting gifts from people being covered in a story

6. Checkbook journalism – paying a source for a story

7. Participation in the news

8. Advertising pressure – being exposed to the influence of advertisers and facing conflicts and policies in print and other media

9. Invasion of privacy

10. Withholding information

11. Plagiarism

In journalism, it’s important these dilemmas be resolved. Ethical issues can be resolved through moral reasoning. Ethicists Clifford Christians, Kim Rotzoll and Mark Fackler have adapted a model, called the Potter Box, devised by Dr. Ralph Potter of the Harvard Divinity School, in order to help journalists and other make moral decisions. The model consists of four elements:

1. Appraising the situation

2. Identifying values

3. Appealing to ethical principles

4. Choosing loyalties

The Potter Box is affective in helping journalists analyze and resolve ethical dilemmas. When a journalist is able to overcome and effectively resolve ethical dilemmas, they are able to grow and prosper as reporters.