Ethical Journalism Weekly Roundup: April 29th, 2014

I Sold Out To China

You know that censorship has won its war on truth-telling when journalists happily police themselves – a story of one reporter’s experiences in China. (via Aeon Magazine)

Media Barred From Guantanamo Bay Terror Suspect’s Pre-Trial Hearing

Some media were effectively kept out of a pre-trial hearing in a Guantanamo Bay terror suspect’s case after a military judge scheduled a rare Sunday session but provided no access for reporters who watch the proceedings in the states. (via The Huffington Post)

Macedonian Activists Attempt to Break Media Silence on Corruption Scandal

Media in southeastern Europe have been plagued by censorship and corruption over the past several years, and Macedonia is no exception. In a recent corruption scandal, the majority of Macedonian media failed to even relay a claim by the country’s largest opposition party that the prime minister was involved in an alleged illegal banking deal. (via Global Voices)

Self Regulation Works

One of the repeated questions I get from young readers and journalism students is about the institution of the Readers’ Editor itself. They want to know how the reporters and the desk atThe Hindu respond to communications from the ombudsman’s office. Does it hurt their professional pride when mistakes are pointed out? Does it lead to course correction in a systematic manner? What are the tools I use to evaluate readers’ complaints? Is there peer pressure to gloss over mistakes? (via The Hindu)

Paying Reporters for Online Traffic Could Take a Toll

It creates an incentive to confect “click bait” with time-tested features that draw an online crowd, as David Carr put it in his New York Times column, by offering “transgendered models posing in disgraceful listicles accompanied by kidnapped nude kittens.” Hey, who could resist checking that out? (via The Organization of News Ombudsmen)

Singapore: Independent Media Making a Mark Despite Restrictions

The restriction of foreign funding might cut off some funding streams for online websites, but Singapore’s blogosphere continues to grow. With the next general election (which has to be called before mid-2016) coming up, alternative websites are getting prepared. Both TOC and The Independent SG are building up to the election. But will establishment sources be willing to engage in their attempts at providing alternative coverage? (via Index On Censorship)

Aftermath of Ukraine Photo Story Shows Need for More Caution

The Times led its print edition Monday with an article based in part on photographs that the State Department said were evidence of Russian military presence in popular uprisings in Ukraine. The headline read: “Photos Link Masked Men in East Ukraine to Russia.” (via The New York Times)

The Elephant In The Room: New Report on UK Media Ownership

The report considers the changing landscape of media ownership across national, regional and local press, as well as radio, TV and internet news sources. Although the state of the UK’s media has been under close examination since the start of the Leveson Inquiry in 2011, media ownership has somehow managed to escape from scrutiny. It is the elephant in the room: obvious to all but never discussed. (via The Media Reform Coalition)

New Guide Helps Journalists Report on Oceans and Fisheries

The ocean is one of the most dynamic and yet most under-reported food systems on the planet. Close to one billion people rely on fish as their primary source of protein and, collectively, the nations of the world catch around 90 million metric tons of wild fish and shellfish from the oceans annually. But for journalists working on stories about often distant oceans and fisheries, engaging the general readership can be difficult. (via Internews)

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