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Tip Sheets: Ethics

Tip Sheet Archive

Recently archived stories from the Everyday Ethics blog
Kelly McBride and colleagues 

New RTDNA Social Media Guidelines Help Journalists Avoid Ethical Traps
Al Tompkins, Feb. 4, 2010
AP Made Right Call in Publishing Photo, Story of Fallen Marine
Bob Steele, Sep. 4, 2009
Journalists Can't Uphold Standard Set by News Blackout of Rohde Kidnapping
Kelly McBride, Jun. 24, 2009
Archived Chat: The Ethics of Posting Mug Shots Online
Steve Myer, Kelly McBride and Matt Waite, Apr. 9, 2009
Editorial Cartoonist Pres.: NY Post Cartoon a 'Misfire'
Steve Myers and Mallary Tenore, Feb. 19, 2009
(Story includes archived chat session)
Inauguration Photo Manipulation Raises Questions
Sara Dickenson Quinn, Jan. 30, 2009
(Story includes archived chat session)
A Case for Airing Fatal Police Dashboard Video
Kelly McBride, Oct. 29, 2008
Satire's New Home in Journalism
Kelly McBride, July 15, 2008
When Principles Collide: The NYT and the CIA Interrogator
Bob Steele, July 5, 2008
Pregnant in Gloucester: The Pack in Pursuit of 'The Pact'
Kelly McBride, June 25, 2008
The McClellan Case: When Loyalty and Public Interest Collide
Roy Peter Clark, May 31, 2008
Framing Your Spitzer Coverage: Issues and Questions
Roy Peter Clark, March 10, 2008
Next Steps on McCain Story: Repeating What You Don't Report
Kelly McBride, Feb. 21, 2008
Rebuilding Trust: What Newsrooms Are Doing
Mallary Jean Tenore, Feb. 20, 2008
Tuesday's Problem: Should Journalists Declare Party Allegiance?
Kelly McBride, Feb. 4, 2008
The Public Bias against the Press
Roy Peter Clark, Jan. 30, 2008
Tensions of The Trade: Competing Loyalties, Conflicting Interests
Bob Steele, Jan. 24, 2008
Calling out the Candidate
Kelly McBride, Jan. 18, 2008
Send in the Clones
Roy Peter Clark, Jan. 17, 2008
The Sad Decline of Britney Spears and Our Voyeuristic Complicity
Roy Peter Clark, Jan. 11, 2008

New Photos from Dover Increase Awareness of War's Cost

By Bob Steele   
Amidst the economic tumult that is sweeping our country, it's possible to forget our country is still fighting wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It's possible to push from our consciousness the reality that Americans are still dying on those battlefields.

That's why it's important to be reminded of the commitment and the courage of those who wear  uniforms, and to be cognizant of the war's cost. Our awareness is heightened now that photographers are allowed to record the moment when the fallen return.

I wrote about this issue six weeks ago, supporting the decision by the Pentagon to lift the ban on photographs of the flag-draped coffins.

Now, like millions of Americans, I view the photos as the remains of Air Force Staff Sgt. Phillip Myers are returned to his family. Symbolically, this moment tells the stories of over 4,000 of Myers' military comrades who have died in battle. This moment also sadly foreshadows what will come in the inevitable consequences of war.

Whether it's with images or words, journalists have an obligation to be sensitive and skilled in telling these stories. I was impressed with the account offered by CNN Senior Pentagon Producer Mike Mount that accompanied a photo for the CNN.com story.

"His name was Phillip A. Myers. A staff sergeant in the U.S. Air Force, he was killed in a roadside bombing in Afghanistan on Saturday.

"The return of his body to the United States aboard a charter aircraft Sunday marked a solemn moment that has been repeated more than 5,000 times at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware since the start of the war in Afghanistan in late 2001.

"Much of this night was like so many of the others: The well-practiced and crisp movement of the carry team silently transferring the body from the plane to the truck that would transport it to the base mortuary and the presence of Myers' family, quietly watching every step and order, ensured dignity and respect for the fallen in an atmosphere that does not lend itself to peace and quiet..."

CBS correspondent Kimberly Dozier thoughtfully expressed concern for the impact on the families of the fallen and the responsibility journalists must accept with greater access to the return of war casualties.

There are plenty of critics who are just waiting for journalists to misstep in their coverage at Dover Air Force Base. And, even when they do their job well, journalists know the challenges are significant.

The Multi-Ethnic Wave That Led to Obama's Victory

By Tom Huang
Amid the barrage of post-election analyses and commentary, I have yet to see a story that examines the multi-ethnic wave that propelled Barack Obama to victory.

Obama won by forging a strong coalition of whites, blacks, Hispanics, Asians and Native Americans. You can see that wide spectrum most vividly in the images of election night celebrations, from Chicago to New York, from Dallas to Los Angeles.

Who was not moved by that televised sea of diversity in Grant Park -- people of all sorts hugging each other, tears streaming down their faces? Who did not recognize themselves in that crowd? (And just who was that guy Oprah kept leaning on?)

Yet, as far as I've been able to tell, most of the post-election stories about race have focused on the boundaries and barriers between black Americans and white Americans.

Completely understandable: Obama, the nation's first black president, broke through the color line. His election holds a profound resonance and meaning for African Americans -- particularly those who grew up and marched during the Civil Rights movement, those who know first-hand the sacrifices that paved the way for Obama's historical moment.

But while recognizing that all of that is important, the media needs to move beyond its traditional black-and-white prism when it reports on race and politics.

Obama won 43 percent of the white vote, 95 percent of the black vote, 67 percent of the Hispanic vote and 62 percent of the Asian vote, according to exit poll data published on The New York Times' Web site. The performance of Democratic presidential candidates in the past seven elections reveals the multi-ethnic strength of Obama's win: With respect to percentages, only Bill Clinton did as well as Obama did with white voters (in 1996). Only Clinton (1996) and Michael Dukakis (1988) fared better with Hispanic voters. No other candidate has done better than Obama did in attracting black and Asian voters (the data for Asians only goes back to 1992).

And that's just looking at percentages. I'm sure that Obama did better than most, if not all, of his Democratic predecessors when it comes to the absolute number of voters within each ethnic group.

In our society, the Latino and Asian populations are growing rapidly. By 2050, the number of Hispanics will nearly triple, to 133 million from 47 million, making up 30 percent of Americans, according to Census Bureau projections. The number of Asians will grow to 41 million from 16 million, making up more than 9 percent of the population.

Perhaps the economic slowdown and the housing crisis brought the different ethnic groups together to support Obama. Perhaps Obama's stand on the war and on immigration issues appealed to them.
But, particularly for Latino and Asian voters, I suspect it was more than that. I suspect they saw something in Obama that they hadn’t seen in previous candidates.

Writer Jeff Yang captured Obama's essence when he told the Associated Press: "So much of what we deal with is the notion of being outsiders, foreigners, of being outside the social dialogue of the United States. You look at Obama and those are some of the same aspersions and slanders being cast at him. He’s kind of the closest thing we can have legally to an immigrant in the White House. He's somebody who understands this journey that Asian-Americans and other immigrants have made."

So Obama's breakthrough symbolizes "The Overcoming" for many people -- justifiably so. But for others, his victory caps another narrative: The Outsider who finally got in.

What stories have you found that address the multi-ethnic wave?

If Obama Wins, Race Has Its Place in Coverage

By Keith Woods

If Sen. Barack Obama is elected president, there's little doubt that the historic nature of his victory will belong in the lead of any story. But it would be hard to argue –- given his record-obliterating fundraising, the vast diversity of support and the oft-praised community organizing -- that it was his race that propelled Obama into the White House.

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If Sen. John McCain wins the election, launching Gov. Sarah Palin into history as the first female vice president, it may prove that some white voters could not get beyond pedestrian bigotry or their own ignorance to vote for Obama. But given the strength of the Republican party, which held onto the White House despite deep dissatisfaction with President Bush in his first term; and given the invigorating effect of Palin's entry into the fray, it would be hard to chalk a McCain-Palin victory up to mere prejudice.

So give race its place. But just that.

Tell the racial reaction story in the event of an Obama victory (and the almost-first story if he falls short). If he wins, interview the older black people who thought they'd never see anyone with their complexion occupy the Oval Office. Talk to the black children who'll have a new vision of the possible. Yes, seek out the civil rights lions and the historians for the perspectives that would give an Obama presidency context and profundity. Predictable as those stories may be, your public will want and need them.

But remember that that will only be a part of the racial story to be told.

There are also stories out there about what happens to race relations when a candidate's ideals, organizing prowess, money-raising potency and stage presence seize the spotlight away from the matter of race. There will be stories about the young people in your community, activated like never before, who will have learned something about the depth and limitations of intolerance through their political activism. Rather than going for the "We are the World" story, tap into what they've learned –- for better or ill -- from this journey.

Surely some journalists will want to declare an Obama victory to be the end of racism, which would be just as naïve and simplistic as the act of drawing too straight a line from the civil rights movement to this election. Neither captures the complexity of the truth: that even bigots may find Obama's plans superior to McCain's; that it may be more important to many voters that Obama is not descended from U.S. slavery, Jim Crow and sit-ins.

In the end, those stories, in pure human-interest terms, are fascinating.

What other questions can you ask on Election Day and beyond?

• Does a black man's victory hold any meaning for Asians, Latinos, Native Americans and others who contend with real and perceived obstacles around race and ethnicity?
• How significant is the fear among white voters that the rise of a black man to the highest office will simply replace one kind of racial bias with another?
• Stoked in recent days by news of two inept skinheads and their nefarious plot, how palpable is the worry among voters that someone will try to hurt Obama if he wins?
• Has the nation been stretched by Obama's success so that there is an immediate benefit in local and state races? Will he make it easier for people in your community to set aside prejudice where other candidates of color on the Nov. 4 ballot are concerned? Consider that question for women in Congressional and lesser races. Will Sen. Hillary Clinton's near-victory in the primaries and Palin's ascendance help blunt sexism's impact on big and small races in your community?

As you plan your coverage, be sure to steer clear of the meaningless, racially coded phrases -- "values voters," "soccer moms," etc. -- that gain so much currency during the frenzy of elections coverage. Avoid the assumption -- most often directed at people of color -- that a black person voting for a black man has automatically made a racial, not political, decision. Remember that few people use race or ethnicity alone to decide how they'll vote. We've talked about those things before in columns you can find here and here.

If Obama's race for the White House has proven anything, it has shown how wrong conventional wisdom can be. Cover race and ethnicity in this election with that in mind. Seek the unconventional. That's where you'll find the story of this unprecedented moment.

How the Rumor of Springsteen's Possible Denver Appearance Spread

By Dan Billin
One of the sorriest spectacles at last month's Democratic National Convention was the blizzard of erroneous news reports saying the program for Barack Obama's stadium speech would include performances by Bruce Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi. The coverage was schizophrenic, with serial confirmations of the rumors on one hand and serial debunkings of them on the other. Not even an emphatic denial on Springsteen's official Web site was enough to dissuade the hard-core believers in the press. How the story progressed from speculation to fact to bust provides an object lesson in the pitfalls of rumor reporting, celebrity-obsessed journalism, and the over-use of anonymous sources.

July 8
Rocky Mountain News columnist Mike Littwin wonders if Obama can get Springsteen for an opening act.

July 10
Rocky Mountain News music critic Mark Brown writes that unnamed local fans are looking at a gap in the Springsteen tour schedule that "happens to perfectly coincide" with the convention.

July 24
After band member Nils Lofgren tells a Denver radio station the Springsteen tour won't be coming to town, the News' Brown reports that unnamed fans "are still speculating Springsteen could show up solo..."

July 25
Rocky Mountain News columnist Penny Parker reports New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine has invited Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi to the convention.

August 6
Denver CBS affiliate KCNC-TV reports "high speculation" Springsteen will perform at the convention, according to a LexisNexis transcript.

August 17
Denver Post columnist Bill Husted suggests Springsteen is the “big act” rumored to accompany Obama’s speech.

August 19
National Public Radio sends correspondent Robert Smith to a Springsteen concert in Hershey, Pa., to interview fans for a piece that will run the morning of Obama's speech.

August 21
"Insiders who would know say [the Springsteen performance is] a 95-percent sure thing," Husted writes in the Post.

August 23
"The buzz has Bruce Springsteen giving a full concert before Barack Obama's speech," says Las Vegas Review-Journal gossip columnist Norm Clarke. He also says it in a guest column for the Rocky Mountain News, where he used to be the gossip writer.

CNN's John King is scoping out the Illinois delegation's seats at the front of the convention hall. "[I]f this were a Springsteen concert, this is where you would want to be," he says.

August 24
Springsteen's "The Rising" is played when Obama introduces running mate Joe Biden at a rally in Illinois. Politico gossip columnist Anne Schroeder's analysis: "This makes the big, huge, hopeful rumor circulating Denver (sparked by some pretty high-up sources) seem like a go: On Thursday at Invesco Field, Bruce Springsteen will appear. And play."

Clarke and Brown say unnamed sources have told them Bon Jovi will play before the speech and Springsteen after. An update to Brown's post says no Springsteen.

Washington Post political gossip columnist Mary Ann Akers reports on the "feverish buzz" about Springsteen. She says an unnamed colleague told her that an unnamed traffic reporter said on an unnamed country music station that there will be traffic problems when Springsteen arrives.

Time magazine senior political analyst Mark Halperin says the rumors have turned out to be "definitively false,” but cites no sources.

August 25
As the convention opens, Denver CBS affiliate KCNC-TV reports Springsteen and Bon Jovi will perform Thursday night, citing "CBS4 partner the Rocky Mountain News."

On the Rocky Mountain News Web site, Brown is reporting that unnamed "in-the-know sources high in the Springsteen camp" have unequivocally contradicted his previous informants, whom he now semi-identifies as "highly placed city and DNC-linked sources." Brown also says for the first time that unnamed "organizers" have told him Springsteen was just one of many artists who were invited but didn’t accept. The Bon Jovi performance is "still in the works," he says.

The Star-Ledger, in Springsteen's home state of New Jersey, reports that "reps from the Springsteen camp" say he won't be performing.

Toby Harnden, U.S. editor for The (London) Telegraph, says a "well-placed Democratic source" has confirmed the Springsteen performance.

CNN's Anderson Cooper tells Wolf Blitzer that Springsteen is coming. "Bruce Springsteen -- that will be pretty cool," Blitzer replies. Cooper backpedals later in the broadcast: "I said earlier before, Bruce Springsteen was going to be playing on Thursday. There is a report out there. We have not been able to independently confirm that. That would obviously be something a lot of folks here would like to see."

Gov. Corzine says he wanted to bring Springsteen to Denver but “wasn't able to connect with him."
 
August 26
United Press International picks up Brown's Springsteen-is-coming story from Aug. 24, but not his Springsteen-isn't-coming story from Aug. 25.

Denver Post music critic Ricardo Baca quotes an "artist's representative" as saying Bon Jovi never had any plans to go to Denver. Washington Post music columnists J. Freedom du Lac and David Malitz say someone "in the Springsteen camp" told their paper the same thing about The Boss.

Brown blogs that he doesn't know which of his sources to believe: the "impeccable" ones who "swear that Bruce Springsteen is closing out the acceptance speech at Invesco Field"; or the ones from "the Springsteen camp -- from the very highest levels" who say "it's just not happening."

Roger Friedman of Fox News reports that Springsteen and Bon Jovi are "confirmed" to perform at Invesco.

August 27
CNN entertainment reporter Kareen Wynter quotes an unnamed Springsteen publicist as saying The Boss "will definitely not be there in any way, not performing, not attending, nothing."

An associate editor for The Atlantic and two reporters for Politico quote emphatic denials from unnamed Obama aides.

Springsteen's official Web site publishes this statement: "Just to add to what the Obama Campaign stated earlier today, while Bruce is an ardent and dedicated supporter of Senator Obama, he will not be performing at, and, in fact, had never planned to perform, at Invesco Field this Thursday."

The New York Times' Maureen Dowd says unnamed Democrats are worried Springsteen and Bon Jovi will reinforce Republican efforts to tar Obama as nothing more than a celebrity.

When the program for Invesco Field is released and neither Springsteen nor Bon Jovi are on it, ABC affiliate KMGH-TV in Denver declares the rumors "quashed."

August 28
USA Today's Alan Gomez breaks with the pack by naming a source, Obama press secretary Dan Pfeiffer, who says Springsteen was never scheduled to perform.

The Telegraph's Harnden says yesterday's conflicting reports "only added to the sense that Mr. Obama is desperate not to be linked to celebrities."

Will Bunch of the Philadelphia Daily News says the failure of the Springsteen rumor to come true is "leaving many to wonder whether he was asked to stay away."

The (London) Independent says "word has it" Springsteen will perform.

"Good Morning America"'s Robin Roberts reports from Invesco Field that Springsteen and Bon Jovi will be performing there later in the day, according to a LexisNexis transcript.

National Public Radio runs its Aug. 19 interviews with Springsteen fans, who were asked to advise the Denver delegates on "proper stadium etiquette."

The Rocky Mountain News is sticking with its story. Brown reports that "many high-placed sources expect Jon Bon Jovi to attend and perform." Staff writer James Paton says, "Jon Bon Jovi will perform a solo acoustic act, and there's an outside chance, very outside, that Bruce Springsteen will show up." And staff writer Aaron J. Lopez reports, "there could be cameos by Jon Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen."

Inside the stadium, as a recorded Springsteen song plays over the public address system, CNN wistfully faces the music:

Blitzer: Anderson Cooper, we're hearing some, I suspect that's a little bit of Bruce Springsteen.
Cooper: Flexing his musical muscle, "Born in The USA."
Blitzer: I don't think he's here, though, is he?
Cooper: No, there were rumors that he might be performing here, but no, this is not Bruce Springsteen performing live.
Blitzer: We can only dream, right?