Out with the old...in with the new media

If you were told that your profession was dying, would you stay and fight, or get out quickly? Ebony Atherton explores Australia’s print journalism and the online revolution that is said to be the cause of its pending death, to find out if this diagnosis is true. 

Source: Offbeat Comics.

“Popular newspapers, the mass newspapers, are dying and will die. They have no future whatsoever. I’m sad to see newspapers go. I have worked on them for 40 years,” says Britain’s leading media commentator, Roy Greenslade.

This was Greenslade’s address to Australian media in May 2008. Pretty bleak considering it was for the Future of Journalism Summit Future of Journalism Summit.

While the United States and United Kingdom have witnessed steep declines in newspaper sales, according to recent Audit Bureau of Circulations data, Australian newspaper sales have only declined by 1 per cent per year over the last ten years.

Roger Fidler, in his book ‘Mediamorphosis: Understanding New Media’, outlines that proclamations about the death of newspapers are nothing new.

“This isn’t the first time the pundits have written obituaries for newspapers. In the fifties and sixties most of them were convinced that television would be the death of newspapers, in the seventies and early eighties it was videotex,” says Fidler.

This notion of newspapers as a dying breed has resulted in a freefall of share prices. The New York Times Company shares peaked in 2002 at $51.50, however are currently trading at a significantly lower $9.18. In Australia, Fairfax Media’s share prices have fallen from $4.99 in 2007 to $1.26 in March 2011.

Due to the decline in newspaper revenues and the rise and popularity of online news sites, there have been significant job cuts in the field of journalism, with Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) Federal Secretary, Christopher Warren, outlining that in 2008 more than 12, 000 journalists lost their jobs.

SMH journalist, Alexandra Smith.

Alexandra Smith, political journalist for the Sydney Morning Herald (SMH), is one of the lucky ones. 

Smith still loves reporting even though she has witnessed great changes in her eleven years in the field.

Having started out as a cadet in rural papers and loving the energy and passion of journalists in the newsroom literally chasing stories, Smith acknowledges the advantages of the advent of the Internet. However, she sees her profession as desk-based now instead of being “out and about talking to people”, which she believes is “a real shame and detrimental to the profession”.

“The Internet was in its infancy when I first began, so chasing stories was much more about hitting the phones and the streets, because we couldn’t simply Google something as part of our research. It meant checking facts was much harder and more time consuming. But as technology has advanced it has made most aspects of journalism much easier for reporters.”

Smith recognises the widespread staff cuts across the world in newspapers and says, “newsrooms are a shadow of their former selves”.

Although she agrees that newspapers are dying, she believes that newspapers still have a loyal following of people, who love the ritual of reading a paper over breakfast and will fight to save them.

ABC Radio presenter, Carol Duncan.

Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) radio presenter, Carol Duncan, also believes in the death of newspapers, having not purchased one in over two years.

“I get the vast majority of my news from real-time media, Twitter in particular, and newspaper websites.  That said, I do subscribe to one paid news site, Crikey, as I find they fill a void of news, information and critical comment that the other mainstream media leave out.”

EnigmaCorp Public Relations (PR) practitioner, Alana Nixon, who is constantly in contact with journalists, admits to also using online news websites more than newspapers.

While she admits, “it’s nice to pick up the paper to get away from the screen”, Nixon believes that magazines will die out sooner than newspapers.

“I think magazines are a dying field, particularly if it’s very celebrity driven. I mean if you follow a celebrity on Twitter you get this celebrity news instantaneously. Whereas, depending on the print cycle, you may not see that news in New Weekly or Who magazine for another week.”

With the closure of Australia’s oldest magazine, The Bulletin, whose circulation had declined by half, as well as New Woman and the more recent closures of Notebook and Ralph magazines, Nixon warns that young female magazines, Cleo and Cosmo, are likely to follow. 

EnigmaCorp PR practitioner, Alana Nixon.

The growing power and capacity of online news is undeniable. Access is quick, easy, current, and free. 

The MEAA found in 2008 that 91 per cent of people surveyed would not pay for online news.

Media tycoon, Rupert Murdoch, intends to change this.

“Quality journalism is not cheap, and an industry that gives away its content is simply cannibalizing its ability to produce good reporting...We intend to charge for all our news websites,” says Murdoch.

However, SMH journalist, Alexandra Smith, highlights that several newspapers such as the New York Times and The Australian Financial Review have tried to charge for online content without success.

“I think the only model that will work in the short term would be businesses paying for premium news, such as more in-depth analysis and micro level news from their sector,” says Smith.

However, paying for content is not the only problem facing journalism.

In the age of digital convergence, news is now a 24/7 commodity.

With less funding and fewer reporters, investigative journalism is becoming obsolete as journalists face heavier workloads and constant online deadlines. Journalists are now expected to produce content across various platforms, including print and online.

“Journalists definitely face greater demands now. Most have a Facebook page and a Twitter account, and instead of having one daily deadline, they now have several deadlines because they have to update breaking stories on websites throughout the day, as well as writing tweets or blogs,” says Smith.

EnigmaCorp Communication Manager, Brett Lavaring

Brett Lavaring, who has 20 years experience in broadcast journalism, has now joined the “dark side” and loves it.

As EnigmaCorp’s Public Relations Manager he agrees that journalists’ workloads have increased.

“ABC presenters are expected to blog about their show, twitter, and have a significant online presence. There is now an expectation for journalists to play in that medium daily,” says Lavaring.

ABC presenter, Carol Duncan, highlights the potential harm in this.

“I am online all day, on my PC, on my phone, in the studio.  It is an area that needs to be carefully managed so that other areas don’t suffer,” Duncan says.

This ‘Inspector Gadget’ journalism sees some journalists repeating content across various platforms due to time constraints and lack of training. Rather than utilising the benefits of each medium, journalists practise ‘churnalism’, which author of ‘Flat Earth News’, Nick Davies, describes as the repackaging of content.

Anecdotal research has shown that journalists are speeding it up but spreading it thin, and releasing stories without proper fact checking, which reflects negatively on the profession.

The expansion of PR industries across the world, together with journalism staff cuts and increased work, has resulted in a global increase of PR-produced ‘news’.

Academic, Clara Zawawi, highlights in ‘Law and Ethics for Professional Communicators’ that "84 to 90 percent of news is sourced from media releases".

PR practitioner Alana Nixon concurs.

“A lot of the time what you write in media releases is what you see in the paper. Perhaps that’s due to heavier workloads for journalists that they simply follow the most obvious story and run with that. I don’t think there is the funding for investigative journalism.”

A colleague of Nixon, Jessie White, emphasises how online pressures are affecting print journalism due to increasing errors in writing.

“Sub editors are being cut out of the online process, proofing is appalling, headlines are becoming more literal and less creative,” says White.

EnigmaCorp PR practitioner, Jessie White

The online forum places journalists under greater scrutiny as readers can cross-check facts, access other news sources with a click of a mouse and verify what they read and see.

The MEAA’s 2008 report, ‘Life in the Clickstream’, found that while 63 per cent of surveyed people believe that newspapers provide quality journalism, 64 per cent agreed that the quality of journalism has dwindled.

The report also found that the majority of journalists (70.8 per cent) reported an increase in workload, with approximately 40 per cent stating their work suffered due to this and increased hours.

For working journalist, Alexandra Smith, the online revolution has increased the tasks journalists are expected to complete, however she believes that ultimately technology has been beneficial to the profession because it has provided a vehicle to access greater information more readily.

Journalists are now using social media as a news source and a platform to establish contacts and locate sources.

“Facebook and Twitter can be invaluable resources. Facebook or MySpace is the first port of call for a journalist to track someone down if they have hit dead ends after trying all other avenues or if they are looking for a photograph of someone,” says Smith.

ABC presenter, Carol Duncan, says Twitter has completely changed how she does her job.

“I see story ideas on Twitter and sometimes people send interview ideas to me. The direct interaction gives people a sense that they can contact me personally, which is great.”

This rapid growth of social media and particularly blogs, has also given rise to citizen journalism.

Australia’s Indymedia network and South Korea’s OhmyNews International, whose slogan, "Every citizen is a reporter", are examples of the growing influence of citizen journalism, as these platforms accept and publish articles from thousands of citizen journalists.

However, citizen journalism raises questions of authenticity, fact checking and editorial balance, as now any individual can disseminate news, often without professional training.

This has the potential of mass misinformation.

Perhaps, their title is the key problem here. You would not call yourself a doctor or a pilot unless you had the qualifications. And you definitely wouldn’t try operating on someone or flying a plane without the proper training.

However, many members of society have no problem calling themselves journalists.

Perhaps a more fitting title would be citizen informants.

According to Brett Lavaring, citizen journalists provide a view.

“They are content suppliers. They are not journalists and never will be! They can provide the crucial picture and explain the scene, but they don’t have the skills to tell the story in a professional manner.”

Source: The Vinceton Post.

SMH journalist, Alexandra Smith, acknowledges their value but ultimately agrees with Lavaring.

“On a basic level, citizen journalism has a great role in the profession because it enables reporters to access a wide range of information they would not be able to otherwise access. But there is more to reporting than that, and trained journalists are still needed to analyse and make sense of pieces of information.”

ABC presenter, Carol Duncan, agrees with these views and sees citizen journalism as complementary to professional journalism.

“Earlier this year the Reuters news agency ‘banned’ its journalists from breaking news on Twitter, which simply ensures their journalists won’t be the first with the news. In the future, news will be broken by the person standing next to the event with a Smartphone, taking photos, instantly disseminating them.  However, it will still be the journalists who build on the stories.”

Duncan believes it is a great time to get involved in the profession, if journalists embrace the technology and advantages it offers.

While the power of the Internet cannot be denied, many academics, professional journalists and PR practitioners believe that the only survival strategy for struggling print journalism is if news organisations identify niche markets and offer less frequently published versions of newspapers and magazines for the hard news junkies.

Media commentator, Roy Greenslade, believes that Australia’s one quality national paper, The Australian and The Australian Financial Review, might remain alive due to their high-net worth readership which attracts advertisers.

PR practitioner, Jessie White, highlights that even with the number of electronic devices on the market now, such as iPhones, iPads, Kindles and Smartphones, people are still reading papers.

“I think the newspaper may become a fashion item like the LP, which has made a comeback after cassettes, CDs, mini disks, MP3 players and now multimedia players,” White says.

SMH reporter, Alexandra Smith, acknowledges that the profession of journalism will see huge changes in the next ten years, with technology and the slow death of newspapers changing the way journalists’ research and produce stories.

“It will become even more about immediacy and less about daily deadlines,” Smith says.

“There will be more comment and analysis and less straight hard news. Stories will be told using several media and there will be a greater involvement from readers, who will shape the direction news takes.”

Smith has a word of warning though.

“Newsrooms used to be energetic places full of passionate people excitedly chasing the big stories of the day. I think it is a shame that newspaper proprietors are spending less and less on staff. Ultimately technology will have a huge role in the profession but once you stop investing in journalists, you stop investing in quality journalism.”

Moral minefields: Legal and Ethical dilemmas

How far would you go for a story? How far would you go to protect your sources?

There are various moral minefields, ethical issues and legal matters facing journalists in the media industry.

As Briet states, "Ethics can be seen as a process of decision making aimed at making the right choices" (2007, p.309), or as Spence outlines, ethics is "a set of prescriptive rules, principles, values and virtues of character that inform and guide interpersonal and intrapersonal conduct" (cited in Briet, 2007 p.309).

What journalists write may "impact on the journalist, the organisation he/she works for and the people about whom he/she is writing or who might be affected by the publication of the story being researched," (Tanner, Kasinger & Richardson 2009, p.157).

The guiding principle of any story should be the 'public interest', although at times it can be hard to find the difference between what interests the public and what is in the public interest. "It’s important to question where the harm can be justified" (Conley & Lamble 2008, p.382).

Although there are internal codes of ethics for individual media outlets, as well as the Australian Journalist Association's code of ethics, journalism is about decision making. Therefore, if journalists are still in doubt about publishing a certain story, researching a certain topic, interviewing certain people, journalists should weigh up the consequences of the action and ask if the action seems justifiable or not, (Tanner, Kasinger & Richardson 2000, p.174).

Accuracy, Accuracy, Accuracy!

"The fact is that while the Internet and Web are a treasure trove for journalists, they are also a legal minefield" (Quinn & Lamble 2008, p.127).

The law is not always black and white and the relevant laws for journalists are those relating to defamation, contempt, copyright and freedom of information (FOI).


Defamation

Privacy, defamation and the implications these have on Australian journalists is unlike the United States and United Kingdom, as there is not an established privacy tort in Australia, which forces individuals to recourse to other legal remedies.

Australian journalists are currently under no binding duty to adhere to standards of privacy protection. The role of the journalist in Australia is to safeguard the interests of society and act as a watchdog over the three most important institutions.

The law of defamation requires the journalist to undertake thorough fact checking.

Pearson states that defamation is "The area of the law most commonly associated with journalists and their work" (2007, p.176), while Quinn and Lamble describe it as "the transmission of information that damages a person’s reputation and makes other people think less of them" (2008, p.129).

Uniform defamation laws, enacted in 2006, state that where defamatory material is wholly published within a particular jurisdiction, that state or territory’s laws will apply. If it is published across jurisdictions, the court will look to the state or territory where the greatest harm is caused.


Contempt

Breit states that the law of contempt "aims to prevent interference with the administration of justice" (2007, p.154). This law is concerned with maintaining the integrity of the courts and not undermining the public's confidence in the judicial system, (Breit 2007, p.154).

Quinn and Lamble state that "The main aim of sub judice contempt law is to achieve a fair trial for an accused person and to avoid trial by the media" (2008, p.10).

The journalists’ privilege, when journalists refuse to divulge their source while directly asked in a courtroom, differs throughout Australia. There aren’t uniform protections on journalist-source privilege across Australia, where punishments of breaching the Evidence Act 1995 (Cth) include a criminal conviction, fines up to $7000 and even imprisonment.


Freedom of Information

Breit states that FOI laws aim "to redress the power imbalance between government and citizens by ensuring accountability and transparency of government and facilitating democratic participation" (2007, p.58). FOI assists journalists in reporting government performance and "the successful operation of FOI is essential to voters getting the information they need to make informed decisions about the performance of elected representatives" (Breit 2007, p.70).

The integrity of journalists has been questioned since the profession’s inception. It has been highlighted that journalists are ranked slightly above used car salesman and just below politicians. Therefore, journalists must consider the potential harm of their story and need to self-regulate.

There is no real protection in Australia for journalists, which is a real problem in terms of investigative journalism. Therefore, the most imperative instrument of journalists’ is their own moral and ethical compass.

Journalists need to report only the facts, never assume anything, be wary of information found online, always seek both sides of the story, be careful when seeking comment, and always be ethical and responsible, (Quinn & Lamble 2008, p.135).

"Today, journalists need a sound understanding of the key legal elements in every jurisdiction where they work, as well as in all nations where their stories will appear. Further, and even more important, they need to have an understanding of the legal systems and relevant laws in the jurisdictions where they source CAR (computer-assisted reporting) information." (Quinn & Lamble 2008. p.128-129).


The following YouTube clip is a Communications lecture on Journalism ethics from LA Times Editor, Jim Newton.

Journalistic Ethics Lecture


Bibliography

AJA (Australian Journalists Association). Code of Ethics.

Breit, R. (2007). Law & Ethics For Professional Communicators, LexisNexis Butterworths, Chatswood, New South Wales.

Keeble, R. (2009). Ethics for Journalists second edition. Routledge: New York.

Newton, J. (2010). Journalistic Ethics, Lec 1, Communications Studies 187, UCLA. Retrieved 24 September from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_MFIZC6UvU

Quinn, S & Lamble, S. (2008). Online Newsgathering: Research and Reporting for Journalism, Focal Press, Burlington, MA.

Tanner, S., Kasinger, M., & Richardson, N. (2009). Feature writing (telling the story). South Melbourne: Oxford University Press.

Tapsall, T & Varley, C. (2001). Journalism: Theory in Practice, Oxford University Press, South Melbourne, Victoria.

Truth and objectivity: post modern casualties or victims of PR piracy?

Mark Twain, the famous author of the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, once wrote "if you don't read the newspaper, you are uninformed; if you do read the newspaper, you are misinformed." However, to what extent is this true? Would you rather be uninformed or misinformed?

The truth, the whole truth and nothing but...

The notion of an 'absolute truth' theorised by philosophers, Plato and Augustine, in the Middle Ages has been rejected by post modernist, Friedrich Nietasche (1890) (cited in Tapsall & Varley 2001, p.91).

Even though the world can be seen to have become a global village, there are still varying cultures and worldviews that surround us. With this in mind, how does a post modern society operate with so many truths being validated? Are we really post modern casualties or victims of PR piracy?

Tapsall and Varley (2001) state in their book Journalism: Theory in Practice that "Truth is central to the process and practice of journalism...But what is truth? And how important is it?" (p.96).

Smith (2003) wrote in Groping for Ethics in Journalism that "there is no absolute truth, rather, truth is relative to the community in which a person participates...Facts are the basis of the truth" (p.65).

Tapsall and Varley (2001) also highlighted the fight for truth as an entity in journalism, which is not to be considered an oxymoron, is becoming increasingly difficult. There is a current assumption that in today's fast-paced world where news is now a 24 hour commodity to sell, journalists who have an ever-shrinking deadline often use the majority of public relations' media releases as stories, and are not fact checking but simply taking the organisation's words as true. Where has objective journalism gone?

The following YouTube clip highlights the belief by Walter Pincus, from the Washington Post, of the end of objective journalism - "truth squading" or fact-checking.

End of Objectivity


In 2000, Zawawi stated that "84% to 90% of news was sourced from press releases" (cited in Breit 2008, p.17). With recent industry knowledge stating that the number of PR practitioners heavily outweighs the number of journalists, as well as the constant deadlines and increasing tasks (blogs, twitter accounts) journalists must complete daily, this statistic can be seen as accurate.

As Cottle (2003) states, "Public Relations is the deliberate management of public image and information in pursuit of organisational interests" (cited in Breit 2008, p.7). With this statement and the above statistic in mind, I believe that newspapers may be misinforming us in some aspects, as a result of unethical PR practitioners who are trying to sell their organisation's products, viewpoints or goals, without any form of a moral compass. However, I would also like to believe, as a journalism student, that journalists will be able to pick up on this and not run with the story.

Therefore, the major push for journalists is objective reporting. Dennis and Merrill (1991) define this as "reporting that is detached, unprejudiced, un-opinionated, uninvolved, unbiased, omnificent, and infallible," (cited in Berry 2008).

Is Journalism in bed with the enemy?

While journalism is meant to be objective, public relations is subjective. So are journalists in bed with the enemy?

Conley and Lamble state that there is a "dual-flow theory of news processing [whereby] the media release can act as the idea for a story, not as a ready-made news story" (2008, p.213-215). Therefore, journalists need to ensure that they research the facts.

From this viewpoint, public relations can be seen as a good thing for journalists as they gain access to information, gain 'scoops', can be given more detail on issues and research, can speak to spokespersons of companies and gain the opportunity to complete a story by its deadline, (Johnston & Zawawi 2004, p.264-265).

While PR is subjective, 'truthfulness' is the responsibility of both journalists and PR practitioners. Their relationship can be mutually beneficial and symbiotic. Although there are several factors that influence truth and objective in journalism practice, such as market/economic forces, time pressures/deadlines, technology and human fallibility, journalists need to remember the MEAA Code of Ethics and particularly;

"Respect for the truth and the public's right to information are fundamental principles of journalism" (Australian Commonwealth, 2010).

Points to consider:

The following YouTube clip demonstrates America as "an eager country to believe". The clip also highlights that in today's global communication and advanced technological world there are more avenues and people willing to cross-check facts in news reports.

Is Modern Journalism about Truth? - YouTube clip of media conference

This YouTube clip outlines the relationship between journalists and PR practitioners. Enjoy!

PR vs Journalism


Bibliography

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Australian Commonwealth. (2010). Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA) Description. Retrieved September 2, 2010 from    http://www.accc.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/289039/fromItemId/815972/quickLinkId/815429/whichType/org

Berry, D. (2008). ‘Chapter 5: Truth and objectivity’. Journalism, Ethics and Society (pp. 111-140). Surrey, England: Ashgate Publishing Limited. Retrieved August 10, 2010, from University of Newcastle eBook Library http://0-reader.eblib.com.library.newcastle.edu.au/Reader.aspx?p=438549&o=536&u=278512&t=1284175493&h=07A503BBA3857134B5403DFA6C243C4EDB5A5D90&s=8830488&ut=1621&pg=1&r=img&pat=n

Breit, R. (2007). Law and Ethics for Professional Communicators. LexisNexis: Chatswood.

Bowman, L., & McIlwaine, S. (2001). The importance of enquiry. In S. Tapsall & C. Varley Journalism: Theory in Practice. South Melbourne: Oxford University Press. pp. 102-112.

Conley, D. & Lamble, S. (2006). The Daily Miracle: An introduction to journalism (3rd ed.). South Melbourne: Oxford.

Cunningham, B. (2003). Re-thinking Objectivity [Electronic version]. Columbia Journalism Review, 42(2), pp. 24-32. Retrieved September 13, 2010, from ProQuest database.

Johnston, J. & Zawawi, C. (2004). Public Relations Theory and Practice (2nd ed.). Crows Nest: Allen & Unwin.

McLachlan, D. (Interviewer). (2004, December 11). Part 10: Reportage and Truth. Lifelong Learning: Cultures in Journalism [Interview transcript]. Retrieved ABC Radio National Web site: http://www.abc.net.au/rn/learning/lifelong/stories/s1174631.htm

Smith, R. (2003). Groping for Ethics in Journalism. Blackwell Publishing: Iowa.

Tapsall, S. & Varley, C. (2001). Journalism: Theory in Practice. Oxford University Press: South Melbourne.

Tickle, S. (2001). The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but... In S. Tapsall & C. Varley Journalism: Theory in Practice. South Melbourne: Oxford University Press. pp. 89-101.

YouTube. PR vs Journalism (Mac / PC Spoof). (2007). Retrieved 12 September 2010, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CbiMXV8U4M

YouTube. Is modern journalism about truth? (2008). Retrieved 22 September 2010, from    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KAXkkEky-0k

YouTube. Bill Moyers Journal - Buying the War - End of Objectivity  (2007). Retrieved 22 September 2010, from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfqr7qLBQJ4

Public Interest versus Privacy - A Journalist's Dilemma

At what point does legitimate public interest become crass public prurience?

By considering this question I will explore as Richards states in Public Interest, Private Lives, “the ethical and legal tightrope that stretches between an individual’s right to privacy and the media’s right to publish, exploring notions of privacy, journalistic justifications for intrusion, and the impact of corporate influences on media ethics,” (cited in Tapsall & Varley, 2006, p. 185).

Central to this topic is the right to privacy.

Richards states that “a right means a guarantee of protection from certain actions of others, or an entitlement to a positive concept such as ‘liberty’” (cited in Tapsall & Varley, 2006, p. 188).

Archard states “the notion of the private delineates a sphere within which we are free to be intimate with others and pursue goals and interests we have without being subject to the public gaze” (cited in Kieran, 1997, p.76).

When journalists intrude on an individual’s privacy their usual defence is that it is in the ‘public’s interest’.

The Australian Press Council states that “'Public interest' is defined as involving a matter capable of affecting the people at large, so they might be legitimately interested in, or concerned about, what is going on, or what may happen to them or to others” (Pearson, 2005, p.12).

The right to privacy has only been identified in the past 100 years and continues to change as our culture changes.

Richards outlines that such a right does exist and can be violated in four ways, including:

1.    Intrusion, meaning the unwarranted violation of one’s physical solitude
2.    Publication of embarrassing private facts
3.    Publication of information that places someone in false light and
4.    Appropriation, meaning the use of an individual’s name, picture or likeness without that persons’ permission, usually for commercial exploitation (cited in Tapsall & Varley, 2006, p.189).

Richards also outlines the justifications journalists use for favouring intrusion over respect for privacy which include:

•    By entering public life, individuals surrender any claim to personal privacy;
•    Journalists have a duty to report situations when these details could have relevance to the public performance of an individual or group;
•    Individual journalists are simply conduits for information, and it is up to the readers/listeners/viewers to decide the limits;
•    If it is not illegal, it must be permissible, (cited in Tapsall & Varley 2006, p. 191).

Examples

An example of intrusion by journalists was evident during Princess Mary of Denmark’s visit to Tasmania in August 2010, to see her family at her sister’s home in Hobart.

Awaiting media outside Princess Mary of Denmark sister's home in Hobart.

In late 2009, an amendment to privacy laws in Tasmania occurred, which now imposes fines or jail terms for breaches of privacy. The Act states it is illegal to visually record a person "in circumstances where a reasonable person would expect to be afforded privacy" and then distribute the images. In practice, it means pictures of Princess Mary or other family and friends inside the boundaries of her sister's home would be considered a breach of the Act.

The journalists pictured above are close to breaching the Act and are not reporting a public interest story but merely a public curiosity story.

Another example of intrusion is the public disclosure of embarrassing private affairs, which was evident in May 2010 when video footage of NSW Transport and Roads Minister, David Campbell, leaving a Sydney Gay Sex Club, surfaced.

Sydney Morning Herald new story - video footage of David Campbell

A Channel Seven news report suggested Mr Campbell had resigned after questions were put to him about using his ministerial car to visit a gay sex club. If the report is accurate, Mr Campbell did not break any rules governing the use of official cars, as there are no restrictions on personal use.

Therefore what was the point of the story? Do you think the journalists of Channel Seven should have aired this story? Was it in the ‘public’s interest’?

It is hard to see how the public interest is served by this disclosure. I do not believe it was in the public’s interest as his private affairs did not affect his job. The publication of this story caused unneeded trauma to his seriously ill wife and forced Mr Campbell to resign due to ‘personal reasons’.

The State Political Editor of the Herald newspaper, Sean Nicholls, asked his readers the question, 'Should Channel Seven have aired the story and footage?'

Of the 60,000 readers who responded, 22% believed Channel Seven was right in airing the story, while a
large 78% believed it should not have been aired.

Some of the comments found about the story on the Herald’s website include;

A career ruined, a family humiliated. This was not in the public interest, just cheap tabloid journalism. Shame on you, Channel Seven.
Fair Go - May 21, 2010, 10:14AM


Another life ruined by the endless search for a story. Does it really matter if he used his government car? This is a matter for David Campbell and his family. Not the media digging for yet another dirty story.
Jimbob | Port Stephens - May 21, 2010, 9:58AM


It's between David Campbell and his family. No one else's business. He hasn't broken any laws and his private life does not affect how he does his job.
bemused | Sydney - May 21, 2010, 9:52AM  (Nicholls, 2010, online).

These examples have highlighted how some journalists write and publish content merely for commercial interests opposed to the public’s interest. However, journalists are also faced with greater ethical decisions when it concerns stories about death, trauma and grief.

As shown in Clause 11 of the Code of Ethics, journalists must "Respect private grief and personal privacy" (Australian Journalist's Association - Code of Ethics).

Richards explains in his book, Public Interest, Private Lives, the ethical dilemma faced by Melbourne journalists from The Age newspaper when publishing a photo of a murdered policemen in a pool of blood. These journalists faced the dilemma of respecting the grief of the family or providing real news – the murder of two policemen which had “key elements of genuine human drama” (cited in Tapsall & Varley 2005, p.187).

This dilemma was also evident in California, when photojournalist John Harte photographed a five year old drowning victim and his grieving family. The ethical question here is whether the paper should have published the photo.

Californian photojournalist, John Harte's controverisal photo.

Robert Bentley, managing editor of the paper at that time, felt that with the number of drowning victims in the area, to run a picture of this emotional impact would be a painful and lasting reminder for the community.

Using the 'Principle of Utility' (the ethical principle that seeks the greatest good for the greatest number of people), Bentley felt that even though the picture would offend the family and several community members, it would serve a greater good for a greater number of people.

Editor of Walla Walla (Washington) Union Bulletin, Ed Clendaniel, also argued in favour of the photo’s publication stating, “we believe the photograph does more to promote water safety than 10,000 words could ever hope to accomplish” (Clendaniel in Christians, Fackler & Rotzoll 1995, p.128).

Do you believe the photo should have been published?

The story could have been told without the photo. I believe that the rationale to publish the photo is not a strong argument. Parents already know that young children need to be supervised when they are in the water and the photo only caused further pain to the family.

The newspaper’s “readers bombarded the 80,000 circulation daily with 400 phone calls, 500 letters, and 80 cancellations...[and] even received a bomb threat...” (Christians, Fackler & Rotzoll 1995, p.128).

Australia has no general tort of privacy invasion, as the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) focuses mainly on private information held by government departments and large corporations.

However, there are codes of practice journalists can look to for general guidance in such matters.
The Australian Press Council states that the news should be presented “honestly and fairly, and with respect for the privacy and sensibilities of individuals”, with the warning that “the right to privacy should not prevent publication of matters of public record or obvious and significant public interest” (McDonnell - Australian Press Council 2004).

MEAA

The Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance’s (MEAA) division, the Australian Journalists Association (AJA), has a Code of Ethics and an ethics review committee that notes privacy to involve:
•    the person (bodily privacy),
•    conversations (eavesdropping),
•    seclusion (surveillance), and
•    personal information (unauthorised disclosure) (MEAA 1997).

The clauses central to our argument today are clause 8 and 11 of the Code which state; Clause 8: Use fair, responsible and honest means to obtain material. Identify yourself and your employer before obtaining any interview for publication or broadcast. Never exploit a person's vulnerability or ignorance of media practice. Clause 11: Respect private grief and personal privacy. Journalists have the right to resist compulsion to intrude.

AJA

The Australian Journalists Association monitors and handles complaints. If journalists are found guilty of breaching the Code they may be suspended, given a fine of $1000 or expelled from membership.

As Pearson states "Whether or not a court or a self-regulatory body ultimately reviews a journalist’s decisions in privacy matters, reporters and news directors are frequently called to account for such decisions, sometimes in other media such as talkback radio programs or on the ABC’s Media Watch program, and often simply by their own readers, viewers or listeners as they discuss the material they are accessing" (2005, p.15), as seen in the David Campbell example.

 Why is there a need for the Code of Ethics when membership is voluntary?

There is a need for a Code of Ethics so that journalists are aware of the right way to ethically gather and report news. It provides journalists with a framework and standard to adhere to, to ensure they remain credible and fulfil their jobs of being public ‘watchdogs’ through decent and fair means. The Code is a mechanism of self-regulation. As Christians, Fackler and Rotzoll state, “There are several reasons why establishing an ethics of privacy that goes beyond the law is important in the gathering and distribution of news” (1995, p.115).

Bibliography

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Archard, D. (1998). Privacy, the public interest and a prurient public. In Kieran, M (ed.). Media Ethics. Routledge: London, pp. 82-96.

Australian News Commentary. (1998). Journalists code of ethics - an oxymoron? AJA Code of Ethics. Retrieved September 2, 2010 from http://www.australian-news.com.au/codethics.htm

Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Australian Commonwealth. (2010). Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance (MEAA) Description. Retrieved September 2, 2010 from    http://www.accc.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/289039/fromItemId/815972/quickLinkId/815429/whichType/org

BBC. (1993). Diana sues over gym photos.  Retrieved September 5, 2010 from http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/9/newsid_2515000/2515739.stm

Belsey, A. (1998). ‘Journalism and ethics: Can they co-exist?’, in M. Kieran (ed.) Media Ethics, London: Routledge.

Belsey, A. (1994). ‘Ethical Issues in Journalism and the Media’, London, Routledge

Brewer, D. (1998). ‘Privacy, What it means for Journalists’, Retrieved 4 September, 2010, from http://www.mediahelpingmedia.org/training-resources/editorial-ethics/247-privacy-what-it-means-for-journalism

Carter, E. L. (2008). Reclaiming Copyright from Privacy: Public Interest in Use of Unpublished Materials. Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly, 85 (2), 417-434.

Christians, G. C., Fackler, M., & Rotzoll, K. B. (1995). Media Ethics: Cases & Moral Reasoning. (4th Ed.). New York: Longman Publishers USA.

Cornwall, L. (1993). Princess Diana remembered. Retrieved September 5, 2010 from
http://dianaremembered.spaces.live.com/default.aspx?_c11_BlogPart_BlogPart=blogview&_c=BlogPart&partqs=cat%3DDiana%2520Magazines&sa=902371897

Cronkite, W. (1997). More bad news. Guardian.

Dale, J. (2007). Journalistic Ethics: Moral Responsibility in the Media.   Prentice Hall: Pearson Education.

Frost, C. (2000). ‘Media Ethics and Self-Regulation’, London: Pearson Longman

Glassvisage. (2010). Too Much Information - The Controversy of Publishing Graphic Photos. Retrieved September 5, 2010 from http://hubpages.com/hub/Too-Much-Information---The-Controversy-of-Publishing-Graphic-Photos

McDonnell, C. & the Australian Press Council. (2004). Asia-Pacific Regional Press Freedom Seminar Country Report – Australia. Retrieved September 2, 2010 from http://www.presscouncil.org.au/pcsite/activities/meetings/asiapac/australia.html

Nicholls, S. (2010). Sex scandal rocks Labor. SMH.com.au Retrieved September 5, 2010 from http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/sex-scandal-rocks-labor-20100520-vpd7.html

Pearson, M. (2005). The Privacy Mandala: Towards a newsroom checklist for ethical decisions. Bond University. Refereed paper presented to the Journalism Education Conference, Griffith University.

Price, N. (2010). Media warned on Princess Mary's privacy. ABC.net.au Retrieved September 5, 2010 from http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/08/17/2985329.htm

Richards, I. (2006). Public Interest, private lives. In Tapsall, S. & Varley, C. (Ed.). Journalism Theory in Practice, Oxford University Press.

The Huffington Post. (2010).  Kate Moss Paparazzi VIDEO Used As Key Exhibit In California Case . Available: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/02/kate-moss-paparazzi-video_n_703737.html. Last accessed 7th September 2010.

Whittle, S. (2009). Tighten up definition of ‘public interest’ to safeguard privacy - University of Oxford. Retrieved September 2, 2010 from http://www.ox.ac.uk/media/news_releases_for_journalists/090713.html

Social Media and Journalism

"We're all a Twitter"

Due to Web 2.0 technologies and the rise of social media an online revolution has occurred. This has changed the way business is conducted, friendships are created and maintained, and caused the field of journalism to enter a new era.

Kaplan and Haenlein state that social media is "a group of internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of user generated content" (2010, Users of the World Unite! The Challenges and Opportunities of Social Media, Business Horizons 53, 1).

Belka states that social media "is the viral spread of information through fans, partners, friends, tweets, videos, blogs...the list is long," (2009, online, Social Media does what? http://www.mindfly.com/blog/post/2009/08/26/Social-Media-does-what.aspx).

Social media such as Facebook and Twitter is now being used by journalists to gather information, establish contacts and locate further sources. Journalists are negotiating with social media to provide a new news source, a news-providing platform and as a link to online news stories. 

Harper outlines this concept of social media as a news source in The Social Media Revolution: Exploring the Impact on Journalism and News Media Organisations stating, "Today's audience expect to be able to choose what they read, and most believe they should be able to contribute content and opinions, too" (2010, p.2). 

Social media also acts as a platform for news, as news organisations, everyday people and citizen journalists use it to break news. This is evident through the breaking news of Michael Jackson's death via Twitter. 

Social media also allows journalists to provide further information and links to their stories. 

The decline in traditional media and rise in online social media (see the pie charts below) means that journalists will need to be multi-skilled in delivering high-quality news, sound, images and online-copy for a global audience. 

As Breit states, "Online journalism combines some elements of all its predecessor forms of news. Online journalism can be immediate, providing frequently updated stories of news events. It gives news consumers some sense of control, allowing them to explore news events and related issues at their own pace" (Breit, 2008, Pulling Newspapers Apart: Analysing Print Journalism, Routledge, Hoboken).

Quinn and Lamble state that "multimedia reporting involves new approaches to news gathering and new ways to tell stories using text, audio, video and graphics. Print and television tell news stories in a linear sequence...multimedia storytelling goes beyond these limitations" (2007 Online Newsgathering: Research and Reporting for Journalism, Focal Press, Burlington).

While journalists are increasingly pressured to have a Facebook account, Twitter account and a blog, they need to ensure that the quality of their journalism remains high. Obviously with all these avenues and tasks to complete, it is hard to produce quality news all of the time. Journalists need to remember their role as public 'watchdogs' and place this as their priority.

Journalism in the Global Village - Globalisation versus Localisation

Where is Journalism going? 

While globalisation has lead to a radical improvement in global communication, erasing boundaries and connecting remote communities with the world, the phenomenon has also lead to a rise in transnational media corporations known as the 'Global Oligopoly', which has affected the content and quality of journalism.

These select few corporations, including Time Warner, Sony, News Corporation and Disney,  have created a concentration of media ownership due to the corporatisation and convergence of media outlets.

Due to the fact that the news is now told from a select few, mainly American owned corporations, there has been a standardisation and marginalisation of information.

"The homogeneity of information is pitched at a predominantly middle-class and Western audience...with large sections of the world left under-represented" (Breit in Tapsall, 2001, p. 215-216 Journalism: Theory in Practise). 

The enormous growth of these transnational media corporations has resulted in their increasing power and influence through their ownership of various media forms such as newspapers, magazines, movies and social media. These companies' internet ventures have also meant that new communication technologies have not given the world a diverse global voice but reduced our worldviews to a narrow few.

Breit highlights this in Journalism in the Global Village, that "Technology is giving the media a global audience and strategic alliances are giving the media immense power, but this has not created a global voice" (2001, p.215).

These media outlets controlled by large corporations are structured around a business model, whereby all processes and products are a commodity, needed to be sold to make profits. "This packaging of news as a commodity that can be bought and sold [is] one of the greatest changes facing journalists" (Breit 2001, p.218). Therefore, journalists are being criticised for the lack of quality news, as many journalists must now write infotainment and soft news to ensure their stories are read and newspapers sold.
 

Stokes and Hudson, authors of Journalism and democracy across borders, Globalisation and Citizenship: The Transnational Challenge, state that "journalism associated with the global media conglomerates gives priority to advertising driven, commercial ventures" (2007, p.58).

Breit emphasises this by stating that "commercial considerations are tainting the news agenda in the global media" (2001, p.216), while Grattan (1998) states that "this convergence is particualrly obvious in Australian newspapers, which are struggling to understand their role in the increasingly commercial world" (cited in Briet 2001, p.216).

These media giants are framing the news and spreading their viewpoints of world events. Journalists are now driven by commerical interests, putting these interests before the public's 'right to know', which Breit emphasises "given the commerical environment and the standardisation of the media's message and target audience, journalists must consider whether a 'right to know' still accommodates the public interest" (2001, p.218).

The Internet is a major component of globalisation that has created a global audience. However, with the decrease in trust of journalists who send out standardised and marginalised news copy, localisation has risen. In particular, citizen journalism has been at the forefront of this phenomenon. It personalises news reports, democracies the news and abolishes gatekeepers. However, it has also been noted to increase regionalism.

While parts of the public have been proactive in restoring the news to cover local content, by producing their own news, it is evident that these individuals do not have the same qualifications as trained journalists. Although their stories may be newsworthy and well written, it is professional journalists who know how to gather, source and find information, conduct interviews and cross-check facts to provide accurate accounts of events.

Perhaps the consumers of news need to take greater responsibility in what they want to hear and read. Rather than the current need of infotainment and soft news, as seen splashed on the covers of tabloids and online news websites, consumers need to want hard news so that jouranlists have the opportunity to write qualilty news and pursue their role as being 'watchdogs'.

I also believe that journalists should resist commerical pressures and pursue their investigative role as being the public's 'watchdog', whereby state funded and public broadcasting institutions continue to support and develop the field of journalism by allowing journalists the freedom and chance to regain their journalistic integrity.

Below is a link to a YouTube clip that highlights American journalists protesting against transnational corporations' push of biased propaganda on journalists.

Globalisation and the media

Below is a link to a YouTube clip that shows Rupert Murdoch speaking about chaning media. 

How Technology Has Changed the Media

Online News - is it an exciting opportunity or a recipe for bankruptcy?

Who will pay for journalism? Is it just about the money?

It is evident that the Internet and digital technology has changed the field of journalism.

Journalists are now able to enter a sphere where their stories can reach a far greater audience unlimited by geographical borders, in a faster and more compelling way, using slideshows, video footage, graphics, hyperlinks and background research to enhance their news.

The Internet has also enabled audiences to have a greater and more efficient participatory role in the news by offering them an opportunity to comment immediately, which has also seen the rise of citizen journalism, (see my first post for more information).

However, this new digital age forces the question of who will pay for journalism, as few media websites charge fees for viewing content.

Media Alliance commissioned Essential Media to survey shifts in dominant news sources in the past five years and found that the:

•    Use of online news websites increased by 13 per cent
•    Use of radio news bulletins increased by 3 per cent
•    Use of TV news bulletins fell by 8 per cent
•    Use of newspapers fell by 6 per cent

Media Alliance Federal Secretary, Christopher Warren, states “whether all newspapers will survive is no longer a parlour game but a genuine consideration,” (2008, Future of Journalism – Life in the Clickstream).

See the link below for the full report.

Life in the Clickstream


This report emphasises the decline in newspapers. It states that in May 2008, at the Media Alliance summit, one of Britain’s leading media commentators, Roy Greenslade, predicted the death of newspapers.
“Popular newspapers, the mass newspapers, are dying and will die. They have no future whatsoever. I’m sad to see newspapers go. I worked on them for 40 years,” (Greenslade 2008, Future of Journalism summit, Sydney).

Newspaper editor and Knight Professor of Journalism at the University of North Carolina, Philip Meyer, emphasised this stating that, “We’ll have to reinvent journalism” (Meyer 2008, Future of Journalism summit, Sydney).

Alan Mutter, a former newspaper editor and cable TV CEO, also stated in 2008, on his blog Reflections of a Newsosaur, that “newspapers are set to lose US$7.5 billion in advertising sales this year, a fall of 23.4 per cent of its peak revenue in 2005,” (Mutter 2008, Monitor move doesn’t spell end of print).

Reflections of a Newsosaur, October 2008

In my journalism class at the University of Newcastle, it was discussed that while the decline of Australian newspapers is not as severe as in the United States, Australian newspapers might need to source their funds from elsewhere, as advertisers pull out due to the drop in print sales.

This loss of advertising revenue which sustains newspapers has resulted in a digital revolution. The rising power and scope of online news is undeniable. Access is easy, quick, current, 24/7, interactive, environmental more sound (less trees are being cut down to print on paper) and ultimately its free!

Problem

However, this last aspect poses issues of profitability for these news corporations and thus the question of how to fund journalists.

Already there has been a decline in journalistic jobs, as seen in the report The Future of Journalism, which states that “The number of full-time Australian journalists has, by Alliance estimates, fallen 13 percent since 2001, from just under 8500 across all media to around 7500” (Media Alliance 2008, p.9). 

Possible Solutions

Diversification was offered as a solution to the question of funding journalists, as well as the Ipad, which Rupert Murdoch has enthusiastically supported as being a way for people to pay for his news, because people buy 'apps'. However, Murdoch should not be so confident, as the Ipad is simply a laptop, offering users the opportunity to browse the internet easily and find the news for free somewhere else.

Why pay when it’s free, just a click away?

Therefore, we are faced with our original dilemma.

Philip Meyer envisaged in the American Journalism Review, that niche publications could save print journalism, stating that a “smaller, less frequently published version, packed with analysis and investigative reporting and aimed at well-educated news junkies, that may well be a smart survival strategy for the beleaguered old print product” (2008, The elite newspaper of the future).

I believe at this point in time that this may be the best option for news media corporations in sustaining an avenue for funding journalists, however further research in the topic may come to another conclusion.

Below is an interesting American YouTube clip that shows footage of The Nation's John Nichols and others about new models for journalism. Media Critic, David Carr of The New York Times, argues vigorously that government funding and subsidies can't save journalism, and discusses some 'green shoots' - emerging new models that are promising ways forward for the struggling media industry. More videos about the future of journalism and media are available at TheNation.com/multimedia

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJHDMSDSt9A

You, the journalist. Citizen journalism – is it shaping the future news?

Image: The Vinceton Post

With the advent of the internet and new media technologies, the definition of journalism is being blurred and the profession stretched to include the general public, as the audience continues to gain a greater capacity to participate in news gathering and news dissemination. 

In today’s times where new media such as blogs, Twitter and Facebook, as well as technologies such as camera phones and iPhones are a part of everyday life, citizens are receiving more power in broadcasting their opinions, stories and news to the world. 

As Stephen Quinn and Stephen Lamble state in their book Online Newsgathering: Research and Reporting for Journalism, citizen journalism is where “members of the public, who are not professional journalists, contribute content that is published on traditional media,” (2007, p.43). 

There are increasing amounts of citizen journalists who contribute their first-hand accounts, photos and videos of events, as seen during news coverage of natural disasters and terrorists attacks. While these citizen journalists, as they are called, provide on-the-scene action and accounts, (remember the shocking images we saw on replay of the 2001 September 11 terrorist attacks, 2004 Thailand Tsunami and 2005 London bombings – see YouTube clips below), should they be called journalists?

A collection of citizen journalists’ video footage of September 11 terrorist attacks used by traditional media and the controversial 'Falling Man' photo.

Video phone footage filmed by a London citizen which was used by a News corporation in a story covering the 2005 London bombings.

While these clips demonstrate citizen journalist footage being broadcast, it is evident that the citizen journalists’ footage is used as part of a news stories. As Roger Fidler states in his book Mediamorphosis: Understanding New Media, “New media do not replace old media. Traditional media change to absorb the best of new media,” (1997 p.23). 

Although these citizens are contributing to media stories and broadcasts, it is professional journalists who have been trained with the skills to gather various sources, check facts, and hopefully have gained the credibility to write newsworthy and accurate stories. While I highly value the contributions made by citizens, who improve and enhance the news, I do not believe that they should be given the title of a 'journalist' when their professional counterparts have undergone the education and training to be given such a title. 

However, there are always two sides to every argument. Some say the rise of citizen journalists is due to the public’s dissatisfaction with the media and criticism of journalists who continue to write frivolous stories in the aim of selling papers and making profits. Suellen Tapsall and Carolyn Varley conclude in their book, Journalism Theory in Practise that the progression of journalism has seen the journalist as no longer a reporter of quality news but an independent businessperson who needs to sell goods to make a profit. 

This viewpoint has contributed to the significant increase in online blogs, personal websites and now newspaper websites offering public comment, as citizens and audiences reject the framing of the news by media conglomerates and want to be a part of the process to ensure the voices of the public are heard and their true interests and needs met.  

A perfect example of this is OhmyNews International (OMNI), a South Korean online news source that was created in 2002 for citizens of the country to become reporters of news that was censored or strictly prohibited by the government. However, professional editors still edit and monitor the news content. The following link provides a view of the OMNI website and an article on the organisation’s plans for the future and the significant value and belief in citizen journalists changing the future of the news. 

OMNI’s original website

On OMNI’s new website (see link below), which features a more blog style and format, there is an entry from the 29^th of June 2010 that describes Yahoo’s debut style guide for the web, The Yahoo! Style Guide: The Ultimate Sourcebook for Writing, Editing, and Creating Content for the Digital World, which OMNI describes as “an excellent addition to citizen journalists’ toolbox, and a boost to their credibility in the world of professional journalism” (2010, online).

OMNI’s new website

In 2007 OMNI recorded 50,000 citizen journalists (Quinn & Lamble 2007, p 43), and while some good quality blog content appears in mainstream media, professional journalists continue to filter the content that appears in traditional media. 

Therefore, I believe that the term 'citizen journalist'  is not fitting, as these members of society are rather informants than journalists. They help shape the news by providing eye-witness accounts and real time action, but it is the trained professionals who gather, arrange, write and disseminate the news that are the true journalists, worthy of the title. Perhaps citizen journalists should be called 'citizen informants'?

What are your thoughts?

Bibliography

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Fidler, Roger. (1997). Mediamorphosis: Understanding New Media, Thousand Oaks, California, Pine Forge Press.

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OhmyNews International. (2010). Citizen Journalism Theory and Practise, OhmyNews, accessed 13 August 2010, <http://english.ohmynews.com/ArticleView/article_view.asp?menu=A11100&no=386159&rel_no=1&back_url>

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