If I were asked to list five characteristics that described a good journalist, my list would probably include objective, accurate, accountable, thorough and ethical. I think these are all reasonable things that we can, and should, expect from the people who feed us our news.
Why do we hold journalists to such high standards? It is because we rely on them. We rely on them to keep us informed, to be our watchdog, and to be responsible gatekeepers.
The evolution of citizen journalism is something that I think may jeopardize those standards. Having an average Joe off the street suddenly calling himself a journalist because he snapped a picture with his cellular phone makes me a little uneasy. The main reason? There is no accountability. Who is this new citizen journalist accountable to?
What happens if a citizen journalist gets a hot scoop unethical practices? What happens when a citizen photojournalist doctors a photograph before sending it to the papers? We can't punish, suspend, withold pay, or even fire a citizen journalist. When something goes wrong, the publisher or the station manager has to deal with the mess.
And this is why I am so surprised that traditional news outlets are calling for citizen journalists. In an age when people are suing each other left and right, I am surprised that theses organizations want to take on that sort of legal exposure. If a citizen journalist commits libel, the paper is just as responsible for damages as the citizen journalist, who probably isn't worth a trial lawyer's time.
I was encouraged, however, when I came upon the Blogger's Code of Ethics. The code very closely mimics the Society of Professional Journalists code. The blogger code includes guidelines such as being honest and fair, minimizing harm and being accountable. This gives me hope that there may be a citizen journalist code of ethics, as well as other guidelines, that will make these journalists-in -the-raw accountable to the public they serve.
Leave a comment