Ethical Dilemmas in Journalism Today

One thing’s for sure, there’s no shortage of ethical dilemmas facing journalists today. Some of those that have garnered attention include: When it is appropriate not to name sources (and does that differ if the information is particularly inflammatory)? What do you do when the business side “leans on” you for more page views to satisfy advertisers? When is it ok to accept payment for food, trips and restaurants? Are the tenets of fair and accurate reporting any different for social media posts? Do bloggers follow a different set of rules than journalists? How does the current industry mantra “to do more with less” affect our daily ethics? The panel is for all journalists and bloggers at any level and will provide both an overview of current ethical guidelines (i.e., SPJ) as well as advice from those who have faced real-life, real-time dilemmas.