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iii For Linda, David, and Laurel
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ivBrief Contents
Foreword Preface
1 An Introduction to Ethical Decision-Making 2 Information Ethics: A Profession Seeks the Truth 3 Strategic Communication: Does Client Advocate Mean Consumer Adversary? 4 Loyalty: Choosing Between Competing Allegiances 5 Privacy: Looking for Solitude in the Global Village 6 Mass Media in a Democratic Society: Keeping a Promise 7 Media Economics: The Deadline Meets the Bottom Line 8 Picture This: The Ethics of Photo and Video Journalism 9 Informing a Just Society
v 10 The Ethical Dimensions of Art and Entertainment 11 Becoming a Moral Adult References Index
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viContents
Foreword Preface
1 An Introduction to Ethical Decision-Making Essay: Cases and moral systems
Deni Elliott Case 1-A: How to read a case study
Philip Patterson
2 Information Ethics: A Profession Seeks the Truth Case 2-A: Anonymous or confidential: Unnamed sources in the news
Lee Wilkins Case 2-B: Death as content: Social responsibility and the documentary filmmaker
Tanner Hawkins Case 2-C: News and the transparency standard
Lee Wilkins Case 2-D: Can I quote me on that?
Chad Painter Case 2-E: NPR, the New York Times, and working conditions in China
Lee Wilkins vii Case 2-F: When is objective reporting irresponsible reporting?
Theodore L.Glasser Case 2-G: Is it news yet?
Michelle Peltier Case 2-H: What’s yours is mine: The ethics of news aggregation
Chad Painter
3 Strategic Communication: Does Client Advocate Mean Consumer Adversary? Case 3-A: Weedvertising
Lee Wilkins Case 3-B: Cleaning up their act: The Chipotle food safety crisis
Kayla McLaughlin and Kelly Vibber Case 3-C: Keeping Up with the Kardashians’ prescription drug choices
Tara Walker Case 3-D: Between a (Kid) Rock and a hard place
Molly Shor Case 3-E: Was that an Apple computer I saw? Product placement in the United States and abroad
Philip Patterson Case 3-F: Sponsorships, sins, and PR: What are the boundaries?
Lauren Bacon Brengarth Case 3-G: A charity drops the ball
Philip Patterson
4 Loyalty: Choosing Between Competing Allegiances Case 4-A: Fair or foul? Reporter/player relationships in the sports beat
Lauren A. Waugh Case 4-B: To watch or to report: What journalists were thinking in the midst of disaster
Lee Wilkins Case 4-C: Public/on-air journalist vs. private/online life: Can it work?
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Madison Hagood Case 4-D: When you are the story: Sexual harassment in the newsroom
Lee Wilkins Case 4-E: Whose Facebook page is it anyway?
Amy Simons viii Case 4-F: Where everybody knows your name: Reporting and relationships in a small market
Ginny Whitehouse Case 4-G: Quit, blow the whistle, or go with the flow?
Robert D. Wakefield Case 4-H: How one tweet ruined a life
Philip Patterson
5 Privacy: Looking for Solitude in the Global Village Case 5-A: Drones and the news
Kathleen Bartzen Culver Case 5-B: Concussion bounty: Is trust ever worth violating?
Lee Wilkins Case 5-C: Joe Mixon: How do we report on domestic violence in sports?
Brett Deever Case 5-D: Looking for Richard Simmons
Lee Wilkins Case 5-E: Children and framing: The use of children’s images in an anti-same-sex marriage ad
Yang Liu Case 5-F: Mayor Jim West’s computer
Ginny Whitehouse Case 5-G: Politics and money: What’s private and what’s not
Lee Wilkins
6 Mass Media in a Democratic Society: Keeping a Promise Case 6-A: Reporting on rumors: When should a news organization debunk?
Lee Wilkins Case 6-B: Doxxer, Doxxer, give me the news?
Mark Anthony Poepsel Case 6-C: The truth about the facts: Politifact.com
Lee Wilkins Case 6-D: WikiLeaks
Lee Wilkins Case 6-E: Control Room: Do culture and history matter in reporting the news?
Lee Wilkins ix Case 6-F: Victims and the press
Robert Logan Case 6-G: For God and Country: The media and national security
Jeremy Littau and Mark Slagle
7 Media Economics: The Deadline Meets the Bottom Line Case 7-A: Murdoch’s mess
Lee Wilkins Case 7-B: Who controls the local news? Sinclair Broadcasting Group and “must-runs”
Keena Neal Case 7-C: Automated journalism: The rise of robot reporters
Chad Painter Case 7-D: Contested interests, contested terrain: The New York Times Code of Ethics
Lee Wilkins and Bonnie Brennen Case 7-E: Transparency in fundraising: The Corporation for Public Broadcasting standard
Lee Wilkins Case 7-F: News now, facts later
Lee Wilkins
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Case 7-G: Crossing the line? The LA Times and the Staples affair Philip Patterson and Meredith Bradford
8 Picture This: The Ethics of Photo and Video Journalism Case 8-A: Killing a journalist on-air: A means/ends test
Mitchel Allen Case 8-B: Remember my fame: Digital necromancy and the immortal celebrity
Samantha Most Case 8-C: Problem photos and public outcry
Jon Roosenraad Case 8-D: Above the fold: Balancing newsworthy photos with community standards
Jim Godbold and Janelle Hartman Case 8-E: Horror in Soweto
Sue O’Brien Case 8-F: Photographing funerals of fallen soldiers
Philip Patterson
x 9 Informing a Just Society Case 9-A: Spotlight: It takes a village to abuse a child
Lee Wilkins Case 9-B: 12th and Clairmount: A newspaper’s foray into documenting a pivotal summer
Lee Wilkins Case 9-C: Cincinnati Enquirer’s heroin beat
Chad Painter Case 9-D: Feminist fault lines: Political memoirs and Hillary Clinton
Miranda Atkinson Case 9-E: GoldieBlox: Building a future on theft
Scott Burgess
10 The Ethical Dimensions of Art and Entertainment Case 10-A: Get Out: When the horror is race
Michael Fuhlhage and Lee Wilkins Case 10-B: To die for: Making terrorists of gamers in Modern Warfare 2
Philip Patterson Case 10-C: Daily dose of civic discourse