Ethics of Mass Media Flashcards
What are the main concerns of ethics in mass media? (12)
- Privacy
- Basic Obligation to Fellow Humans
- Conflict of Interest
- Courts and Trials
- Gifts and Payola
- Reporting on Crime
- Stereotypes
- Accuracy of Information
- Undercover Reporting
- Checkbook Journalism
- Reporting on Risks
- Taste
Privacy
-deals with individuals’ right to privacy
-technology is making it easier to violate privacy
-information can be sold to other people
Ex: Facebook and advertisers monitor your activity to pitch products
Ex: media chasing after celebrities
Basic Obligations to Fellow Humans
-what happens when there is a collision of basic human principles and good reporting – do you still publish?
-should journalists ever set reporting aside for a human being
-what responsibility does the media take in something that results from them publishing a story?
-journalist may be criticized for helping a human in need instead of reporting
Ex: identity of Russian spy exposed— he threatened to commit suicide if they published the article – they published and he committed suicide
Conflict of Interest
-there may be different interests that collide with each other
-media doesn’t want to frustrate advertisers if they publish a story that would hurt the advertiser
-people in the media have different duties (duty to family, to audience, to employer, to profession, to society)
Ex: does a reporter travel to a dangerous country in war to report even though they’re risking their life
Ex: financial advisor recommending a purchase because the company was paying him
Courts and Trials
-having cameras may influence a trial
-can people get a fair trial with cameras?
-can scare off witnesses
-can also bring people forward and exaggerate information so they can get their 15 minutes of fame
Gifts and Payola
-giving gifts to influence coverage
-payola: in the recording and radio industries, it is when you pay for play
-payola has been made illegal but people now give large gifts rather than money
-reverse payola: not initiated by artist or recording studio, but by the radio station
-may threaten to not play an artist’s music if they don’t perform at radio events, so it pressures them to perform
-junket: gifts given in exchange for favorable coverage
Ex: restaurant reviewer given free meals to they get a good review
Ex: movie studios paying for travels to a movie premier in exchange for favorable coverage
Reporting on Crime
-what information should and should not be included in crime reporting
-information may intentionally be left out so it doesn’t disrupt the narrative you’re trying to convey
-including information may reinforce stereotypes
-publishing crime details may encourage copycat crimes
Ex: Should rape victims names be made public?
Stereotypes
-most don’t like how the media depicts them
-can perpetuate stereotypes, mainly racial and ethnic
-whitewashing
-racial erasure
-colorlind casting
-flower vases
Ex: Italians often depicted as Mafia leaders
Ex: gay people historically represented negatively in media
Whitewashing
using white actors in parts that were for a different racial or ethnic minority
Ex: Emma Stone playing a Chinese descended character in the movie Aloha
Racial Erasure
changing the name of a character in a way that strips it of its cultural background
Ex: In the movie The Martian, the character Vincent Kapoor originally had an Indian first name
Colorblind Casting
not worrying about the race, ethnicity, or disability of who might be playing a role
Ex: In the live action Ariel, Ariel is played by an African American
-actors used to be celebrated for bringing exposure to certain groups
Ex: Leonardo DiCaprio in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape
-we have moved to color conscious casting
Flower Vases
taking a role that originally didn’t have a Chinese character and giving it to a young Chinese woman to make popular for Chinese audience
-sometimes referred to as reverse whitewashing
Accuracy of Information
-information should be accurate and not fabricated
-should not make up quotes or photos
Ex: story of Jimmy the eight year old heroin addict was completely made up
Ex: National Geographic moved two pyramids closer together in photo so they could fit on cover page
-native ads
Native Ads
an ad that is masquerading as a regular article
-planted by an advertiser
-blurring the line between ads and stories
-AI has made this more difficult; e.g. Anthony Bourdain’s voice with AI in the documentary Roadrunner
-easy to fake videos; can be used for negative things
Ex: AI of Taylor Swifts face on nude photos that are not actually her
Undercover Reporting
-lying about identity or using hidden cameras to get a story
-can expose scams, abuses, and discrimination
-requires deception
Ex: reporter submitted resumes to a grocery store and led to the discovery that they use old meat
Ex: 40 year old man pretending to be 13 year old girl online to get information about sexual abuse
-letter ratings for restaurants was the result of undercover reporting
