International standards
training module
iwpr.net
What we mean by standards…
 First we mean the standards of quality -- the ethical and
professional standards by which we work
 Second we can mean the standards as in the aspects of our work -what is common and typical about the articles produced
 We will deal with the first issue in this hour
Class questions to start
 Are international standards really possible?
 Is there really a "normal" journalism?
 Why did you become a journalist?
 What is journalism?
 Does each region and each country have it's own brand of
journalism?
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International standards
training module
iwpr.net
Class questions
1. Note how many cultures/countries represented.
2. Have participants name the ethical standards journalists recognise
locally.
3. Name recent success stories and failure stories related to ethics in
journalism locally. Are there systemic problems?
Various attempts to codify journalistic ethics: lots of differences but
it's often a difference in stresses (differences in degree not kind)
 warnings consistency against incitement and discrimination feature
high in the Press Code for Bosnian Journalists
 impartiality and accuracy are the top items in the BBC Producers'
Guidelines
 The Japan Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association's Canon
of Journalism pledges newspapers to "continued effort toward an
affluent and peaceful future"
 The Association of Journalists of Kyrgyzstan have a rather nice
start to their Code of Ethics: "The journalist's duty is to serve the
truth. The role of mass media is to look for the truth."
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International standards
training module
iwpr.net
Underlying similarities
Certainly every code agrees on what is wrong:



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libel/slander (defamation)
plagiarism
malicious misrepresentation
accepting bribes
Thus we have general agreement on what unethical journalism is…
…but, somewhat surprisingly, we also have quite a bit of
agreement on what proper journalism should be…
3 key points of agreement…
1/3: Every code highlights "impartiality" or "independence"
 different stresses on

commercial impartiality

“Outsider” exercise:
political impartiality

impartiality in the face of
special interest groups
 At the next coffee break or
lunch break, ask participants to
make observations in the streets
and public areas of their town,
noting two or three things that
the non-native would find
unique or particular to the
region or town where you are.
 But ALWAYS there seems to
be general agreement among
the CoEs everywhere that the
journalist should be somehow
SEPARATE from the story
being covered
 John Simpson (BBC World
Affairs Editor and with the
BBC since 1966) points out
that a journalist is "always an
outsider"
 The observations should be
simple things one can see and
hear in public. This is a test of
observation skills and the
ability to see one’s
surroundings afresh – as an
outsider.
 After the break, discuss these
observations. Are some of these
observations useful for adding
colour to stories?
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International standards
training module
iwpr.net
 Impartiality at least seems to be a universally accepted ideal
 but Impartiality is never 100%
o a journalist STRIVES FOR THE IDEAL of independence
o a journalist is always working against forces in society to maintain
independence
-----------------EXECRICSE: Spectrum of independence:
1: Draw the spectrum, explaining the two poles
2: Class question: what are the forces in society that might try to
influence or affect the journalist’s work (draw in arrows below spectrum)
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International standards
training module
iwpr.net
2/3: Every code stresses "accuracy"
 The urge to "get it right" is always strong
 But it's more than this: facts need to be weighted properly. This is
essentially subjective, but some sense of balance is the goal.
 Often this is not just an ethical question; it has legal ramifications as
well (libel, esp. in UK law)
 Some would put "fairness to sources" here too, as being accurate
means quoting accurately and fully (in meaning if not in actual
word), leading to our next point…
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International standards
training module
iwpr.net
3/3: Nearly every code stresses "fairness" in some form
 Fairness to interviewees
 The BBC's Producers' Guidelines say interviewees have a
right to know:




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what the programme will be about,
what kind of contribution they are expected to make
whether an interview will be live or recorded
whether it will be edited
it also says an interviewer can be sceptical and searching but
not discourteous
 Fairness in obtaining information
 the IFJ CoE says: "The journalist shall only use fair methods
to obtain news, photographs and documents."


But how are "fair methods" distinguished from unfair methods?
eg, the paparazzi: can they ever be justified?
 "fairness" as a concept seems quite culture-dependent (what one
group will see as fair, another will see as unfair)
 still, the concept of "fairness" does cross cultures in that:
 we understand journalists to wield a certain power in society

we understand that abuse of that power is ethically wrong
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International standards
training module
iwpr.net
Protection of sources
 many codes of ethics emphasise the journalist's obligation to
protect his or her sources
 this is not a right recognised by every country's legal system
o in fact, it is the exception, not the rule
o In the US and Australia, journalists are occasionally thrown
in jail for short periods over this
 the Council of Europe's Convention on Human Rights
doesn't specifically mention this, but a decision by the CoE
Committee of Ministers Deputies recommends member
states recognise the right of journalists not to disclose their
sources of information when applying Article 10 of the
European Convention on Human Rights on freedom of
expression.
 At IWPR, we certainly consider it a journalist's right, but it's hard
to make the case that it is an international standard
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International standards
training module
iwpr.net
Conclusion: So, is there an "international journalism"?
 Surprisingly, yes.
 Many different codes for many different countries, but each
mention the same key features,
1. impartiality
2. accuracy
3. fairness
 Differences are in stress, not in ideals
Discussion: Living up to the ideals
 This is all very nice, but it's a bit theoretical.
 Still, these are questions we deal with every day, even if we don't
recognise them openly as such.
 Examples from the floor?
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International standards
training module
iwpr.net
Useful links:
Press Code for Bosnian Journalists
http://www.ijnet.org/3a5b556063815.html
BBC Producers' Guidelines
http://www.bbc.co.uk/info/editorial/prodgl/index.shtml
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's handbook:
Journalistic Standards and Practices (Canada, 1993)
http://cbc.radio-canada.ca/htmen/5_2.htm
Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct
Radio-Television News Directors Association (USA, 2000)
http://www.rtnda.org/ethics/coe.shtml
International Federation of Journalists' Code of Ethics
http://www.ijnet.org/5131.html
Various individual countries' codes of ethics for journalists:
http://www.ijnet.org/code.html
Council of Europe's
Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
http://conventions.coe.int/treaty/en/WhatYouWant.asp?NT=005
decision in 2000 pertaining to protection of sources:
http://press.coe.int/cp/2000/172a(2000).htm
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