Media Ethics Division
Burnett Award for Graduate Student Papers
Journalism as a Calling: Linking Social Identity and Institutional Theory to Protect the Profession • Michael Davis, University of Iowa • “Journalists often refer to their work as a calling, giving its practices and rules a symbolic power of importance. The institution of journalism uses this rhetorical device as a shield between it and those who wish to break it down, and to create markers of social identity. By linking social identity theory and institutional theories, this paper argues that this perspective potentially harms the profession, blocking professional innovation and public accountability in a democracy.
Learning from Confucius: Moral self-cultivation (xiuji) and its application in media ethics education • Yayu Feng • This article investigates the questions of moral development and ethics education through the Confucian approach. It introduces the concept of self-cultivation (xiuji) from Confucian ethics, and applies it as a new perspective that enriches media ethics and lightens a new pathway to understand moral development and professional excellence. It argues that the Confucian idea of moral self-cultivation offers a less instrumental and more engaging perspective for media ethics teaching and learning than the reasoning skill-oriented and decision-making-centered model of ethics training. Through a close reading of the concept of self-cultivation and its ideas of zixing (examination of the self) and observance of li (ceremony/social rites), the article provides practical examples of how these ideas can be applied to media ethics learning and teaching.
Imagining culinary communities: Exploring lifestyle journalism ethics through the New York Times food section • Joseph Jones • This paper investigates the ethical obligations of lifestyle and food journalists. Informed by the history of food writing and the ethical principles of care and democracy, a text analysis of six months of the New York Times food section was conducted. While the Times provided a playful, aesthetic, and potentially empowering discourse on food and eating, it was limited by class privilege and the strictures of consumer culture. Although lifestyle journalism is often defined with reference to consumerism, it is here argued that such definitions are inadequate when considering the vital role of journalists imagining culinary communities. If food journalists are to be considered journalists, then they must show care and feed the social connections necessary to empower democratic actors.
Open Call
Do What Works: Journalism Ethics as a Framework for Social Media Content Moderation • Caitlin Carlson, Seattle University • Social media platforms from Facebook to Twitter are struggling to navigate the process of content moderation. Despite their best efforts to craft reasonable community standards for users, issues such as the spread of disinformation or hateful rhetoric continue to plague social media organizations. Content moderators are in desperate need of an ethical framework to guide their decision-making regarding the removal of individual posts, ads, images, videos, and accounts. Scholars and activists have begun to offer piecemeal solutions to the problem but what is needed is a comprehensive framework for content moderation ethics. This paper argues that the existing professional standards used by journalists in the United States, specifically the Society of Professional Journalists’ (SPJ) Code of Ethics, should serve as a starting point to develop ethical guidelines for social media content moderation. The four main principles of the SPJ Code of Ethics are analyzed to determine what lessons they might offer to social media content moderators. The insights yielded are then used to develop a comprehensive framework for social media content moderation ethics based on the SPJ Code.
Moral Reasoning Regarding Sponsored YouTube Videos: An Investigation of Children’s Theory of Mind and Disclosure Prominence • Jessica Castonguay, Temple University • While a great deal of research has assessed age differences in children’s ability to understand commercial messages, this understanding does not necessarily mitigate advertising effects. Therefore, some scholars suggest that moral assessments of advertising practices influence children’s acceptance of persuasive messages. This study therefore responds to Nelson’s (2019) call that “New forms of advertising to children necessitate new studies and examinations of ethics,” by investigating the development of children’s moral evaluations of sponsored YouTube videos. Findings suggest that moral disapproval of sponsored YouTube content is more likely as children cognitively develop and they are more likely to justify this stance by considering the impact on others and societal “rules,” while less mature children reason purely based on the perceived impact on the self. When a disclosure that the video is an advertisement is explicitly stated, the likelihood of children’s disapproval increases. Both the presence of a disclosure and children’s moral disapproval of the practice are negatively associated with liking of the promoted brand. These findings have implications for parents and educators and provide a starting point for future research.
Keeping up with the ethical boundaries of advertising: Big soda, metadiscourse and paradigm repair • Patrick Ferrucci, U of Colorado-Boulder; Erin Schauster • This study utilizes a framework previously unseen in advertising ethics research – paradigm repair – and applies it to the divisive 2017 Kendall Jenner Pepsi advertisement by studying metadiscourse from trade publications and mainstream press. After the controversary surrounding the commercial ensued, actors within and outside the advertising industry argued the ad violated the ethical boundaries of the industry because it coopted a social issue, acted as a form of cultural appropriation, and served as an example of brand activism (gone awry). Textual data analyzed also argued this paradigm violation occurred because Pepsi created the ad with an in-house agency, there’s a lack of diversity within the industry, and the industry’s current professional culture often catalyzes controversial material. This study concludes with an argument for paradigm repair’s utility for studying advertising ethics, and with implications for advertising practice.
Public Relations Practitioners’ Understanding of Fake News: Examining the influence of ethics counsel identity and individual ethical orientations • Rosie Jahng; Hyunmin Lee • This study examined whether public relations practitioners’ ethical responsibility as public communicators can help better address problems associated with fake news. Based on role theory (e.g., Dozier, 1984) and other studies regarding professional code of ethics and individual ethical orientations, this study explored whether public relations practitioners identify their ethics counsel responsibility and how that influences the way they understand fake news. An online survey with a nationally representative sample of public relations practitioners was conducted to examine the relationship between strong ethical identity among public relations practitioners and different aspects of understanding and addressing fake news. Results are discussed in terms of ethical responsibility of public relations to communicate truthfully and regain trust from the public.
* Extended Abstract * In the Media We Trust? Exploring the Effects of Perceived Risk, News Disputes, and Credibility on Consumer Attitudes Toward Biotechnology Companies • Holly Overton, University of South Carolina; Fan Yang • This study conducts a 2 (Risk: Low vs. High) X 2 (Pre-existing Attitude: Anti gene-editing technology vs. Pro gene-editing technology) X 2 (Dispute: absent vs. present) X 2 (Media source: Buzzfeed vs. NYT) factorial online experiment to examine the impact on individuals’ attitudes toward a biotechnology company and trust in the media source. Results indicate that dispute messages enhance attitudes toward the company but decrease trust in media sources. Implications are discussed.
Moving into the media world: The moral psychology of emerging adults in journalism and communication • David Craig, University of Oklahoma; Patrick Plaisance; Erin Schauster; Ryan Thomas, University of Missouri; Chris Roberts, University of Alabama; Katie Place, Quinnipiac University • Emerging adulthood is a distinct, transitional stage of life and work characterized by several features, wherein little is known regarding moral development. This study is part of a three-year, longitudinal study with recent graduates across six U.S. universities who studied journalism and communication. Guided by emerging adulthood, moral psychology and media exemplar research, 192 participants completed an online survey regarding their personality traits, virtuous character, moral reasoning and ethical ideology.
The Moral Psychology and Exemplarism of Leaders in Marketing Communication • Erin Schauster; Patrick Plaisance • Organizational leaders shape what others believe and how they behave, which is also true for moral behavior. Moral exemplars are invaluable resources for education and in practice, yet there is scant research on media exemplars. The current study utilized a questionnaire to better understand the moral psychology profile of marketing communication executives in positions such as chief executive officer of international agencies, which suggests what personality traits, ethical ideology and moral reasoning that exemplars possess.
Familial Experiences of Moral Exemplars in Marketing Communication • Christopher Vardeman, University of Colorado Boulder; Erin Schauster • Media and communication executives, from journalists and public relations practitioners to brand managers and the advertising agency executives that represent them, are continuously confronted with dilemmas that require moral deliberation. To understand how a person, such as a moral exemplar, develops moral awareness and moral imagination, media ethicists have looked to moral psychology theory. Based on the understanding that life experiences impact morality, such as familial experiences with one’s parents, and considering the limited research in media ethics literature on the topic, the current study uses interview data with thirteen media and communication executives to determine how, if at all, childhood and adolescent familial experiences have impacted their later-in-life moral decision making. Participants indicated, via both prompted and unprompted anecdotes, that values such as honesty, empathy, compassion, and positivity were instilled by their family members from an early age and that they have carried these values and consciously applied them to their professional practices. The current findings suggest that value salience is a result of early life, familial experiences that include positive modeling experiences, as well as experiences and instruction that arose during times of adversity. Because of these vivid experiences and memories, today, marketing leaders are able to perceive the moral nature of various actions and decision-making that has potential consequences for employees, other stakeholders, and their families.
Covering a complicated legacy with a sledgehammer: Metajournalistic and audience discourse after Kobe Bryant’s death • Carolina Velloso, University of Maryland, College Park; Wei-ping Li, University of Maryland; Nohely Alvarez; Shannon Scovel, University of Maryland; Md Mahfuzul Haque, University of Maryland College Park; Linda Steiner • This paper assesses journalists’ and audiences’ responses to both Kobe Bryant’s death and the Washington Post’s suspension and subsequent reinstatement of Felicia Sonmez. Journalists’ coverage of Bryant’s death and the Sonmez suspension focused on the complexity of Bryant’s legacy and emphasized the journalistic values of professionalism and truth. Audience members posts comments that offered feedback to the journalists on their coverage, generally supporting Sonmez while critiquing the Post’s newsroom social media policy.
The Path Forward: A Thematic Analysis of Structure and Autonomy in Local Digital Journalism • Rhema Zlaten, Colorado Mesa University • The main purpose of this qualitative thematic analysis was to examine the shifting digital news industry, especially in regard to individual and organizational-level structure and autonomy. Via in-depth interviewing, I worked with the editorial staff at a hyper-local digitally native news organization to examine their organizational structure and expressions of autonomy. Four major themes emerged: workflow (with sub-times of time constraints, workplace expectations and role-balancing); company culture; navigating tensions; and autonomy.
Special Call for International Topics in Media Ethics
Traditional Knowledge for Ethical Reporting on Indigenous communities: A cultural compass for social justice • Ann Auman, University of Hawaii; Alana Kanahale, University of Hawai’i • This study seeks to improve reporting on Indigenous communities by applying Traditional Knowledge labels and guidebooks for appropriate ethical behavior and practices that respect Indigenous cultures, cultural knowledge and protocol. The method and discussion draw on a sample of reporting guidebooks on Indigenous peoples as well as TK labels developed by cultural preservationists to educate people about Indigenous information, visuals and artifacts that are sacred, restricted or shared. They could be called the journalist’s “cultural compass.”
Representing the “Other” Woman: Transnational Feminism and the Ethics of Care in Media Coverage of MENA Feminist Movements • Sara Shaban • This paper aims to illustrate how transnationalism enables the ethics of care by examining how American journalists covered the women’s movements in Saudi Arabia and Iran. By exploring the United States’ geopolitical relationship with these two countries, this study highlights how geopolitical agendas can negate ethical reporting and influence the decision-making process of journalists as well as the nationalist values that manipulate those choices.
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