Romayne Smith Fullerton

Covering kids: are journalists guilty of exploiting children?

Because the social sciences have provided much of the intellectual base on which journalism rests, this paper calls for the application of social scientific protocols when journalists interview or interact with children. Working from several Canadian case studies, it argues that media professionals must adopt a systematized and rigorous approach for reporting young people that is akin to the strict guidelines set out by the social sciences to ensure the ethical treatment of human subjects in research situations. If news organizations in general and journalists specifically were to borrow these research protocols and adapt them to their interview situations, news people might better ensure that childrens stories are told in a responsible, ethical manner.Because the social sciences have provided much of the intellectual base on which journalism rests, this paper calls for the application of social scientific protocols when journalists interview or interact with children. Working from several Canadian case studies, it argues that media professionals must adopt a systematized and rigorous approach for reporting young people that is akin to the strict guidelines set out by the social sciences to ensure the ethical treatment of human subjects in research situations. If news organizations in general and journalists specifically were to borrow these research protocols and adapt them to their interview situations, news people might better ensure that childrens stories are told in a responsible, ethical manner.

Murder in Our Midst: Expanding Coverage to Include Care and Responsibility

Using a U.S. and a Canadian example, in this article we argue that news reports of murder, especially of the heavily covered signal crimes that become part of community storytelling, often employ predetermined formulas that probe intrusively into the lives of those involved in the murder but ultimately come away with only cheaply sketched, stick-figure portraits. The thesis is that crime coverage that is formulaic tends to produce cynicism and a distance between the reader and those involved in the crime. However, a deeper and more caring probe into the causes and consequences of crime could lead the community to wider conversations about responsibility, social justice, and reconciliation. What is required to expand the reporting of murder stories is more of the ethic of care that can serve to both deepen the publics understanding of the individual crime and widen the communitys dialogue about its significance.

'Killing' the true story of first nations: The ethics of constructing a culture apart

Cases taken from the coverage of Canadian/Ipperwash and American/Makah disputes over tribal land and sea claims point up that subtle but entrenched racist assumptions, conclusions, and myths of native culture persist despite attempts by newsrooms to be more culturally sensitive. Traditional journalism standards of practice and ethical approaches must be expanded to consider more of the subtleties of medias problematic representations of aboriginal peoples—as a culture, a culture apart, and a cultural construct. The ethics of continental philosopher Emmanuel Levinas, the ritual model of communication, and frameworks and methodologies used by feminist and cultural studies scholars are applied to show that journalisms current standards, which are rooted in Enlightenment ethics and embrace a transmission view of communication, are inadequate to the challenge of reporting on diversity in an ethnically complex world.

Telling Tales in the Shadow of Giants: Canada, Ireland, and the Ethics of Crime Coverage

ABSTRACT A study done in Canada and Ireland and in the 2 countries that cast a long shadow of influences over them—the United States and England respectively—suggests that the press council/ombudsman self-governing structure recently implemented in Ireland might help the Canadian press to gain more independence from court controls and regain a deeper sense of its own stated mission. The study included in-depth interviews with journalists and scholars in all 4 countries, close readings of sample crime coverage, and examinations of prevailing ethics codes and accountability practices. The Irish said they are discovering that by foregrounding ethics, they have relaxed the battle against legal restraints and—to some measure—dug out from under the competitive pressures that had threatened to bury their primary mission.

At a Crossroads or Caught in the Crossfire

This study of crime reporting shows that keeping crime records secret hurts democratic consolidation. While many reporters and journalism experts interviewed claimed to value the presumption of innocence, at the same time, many skirted legal restrictions and ethical codes. Police and prosecutors supplied leaks, and reporters sought further information from witnesses. This porous secrecy leads to publication of rumors and unreliable eye-witness accounts. Four exacerbating factors affect this reporting method: widespread “clientelism,” a partisan news media, an alternative definition of “public interest,” and weak professionalism.

Media’s Role in the Rob Ford “Crack-Tape” Scandal

This chapter analyzes Canadian media coverage of the scandal surrounding the (former) mayor of Toronto, Rob Ford, who was caught on cell phone video footage smoking crack cocaine. The backlash that resulted against the investigative journalists who broke this story indicated that the public is deeply lacking in knowledge of newsroom conduct and is highly skeptical of media coverage of scandal, including the authenticity of digital media capturing scandalous conduct. The authors argue that journalism should not “other” people but be inclusive of their readers with the aim of not only serving the public interest, but also earning it.