Borrowed with permission from Indiana University East.
Borrowed with permission from Indiana University East.
Members of the Society of Professional Journalists believe that public enlightenment is the forerunner of justice and the foundation of democracy. Ethical journalism strives to ensure the free exchange of information that is accurate, fair and thorough. An ethical journalist acts with integrity.
The Society declares these four principles as the foundation of ethical journalism and encourages their use in its practice by all people in all media.
One of the ways in which a news source demonstrates its authenticity and responsibility to its readers is through a publicly accessible code of ethics or standards. A sample of various codes, mission statements and ethics handbooks are listed below.
Seven Standards of Quality Journalism
1. Multiple credible sources
2. Verification
3. Avoidance of Bias
4. Balance
5. Documentation
6. Context
7. Fairness