Ethical Journalism Weekly Roundup: May 20th, 2014

Life and Death as a Female Editor

After the departures of Jill Abramson from the New York Times and Natalie Nougayrède from Le Monde, Amanda Wilson – the only woman to lead the Sydney Morning Herald in its 180-year history – outlines the perils of editing while female. (via The Guardian)

Covering Hostage Situations

The images we selected convey the idea of the girls being held, without showing them in such detail that would identify specific children in this abusive situation. While he have given heavy coverage to this story overall, our practice on hostage images is to use the minimum necessary for news purposes while also making clear the hostages are being held under duress. We also limit to the essentials our quotations from hostage statements in such videos. We do not wish to be used for propaganda purposes. (via The Associated Press)

News Drones Over El Salvador

Illegal in the US, newsgathering drones are taking off in Latin American media. News drones call for ethical discussion, “before we have flying robots with cameras as a commonplace thing,” Waite said. (via Global Post)

What the European Union’s New Freedom Of Expression Guidelines Say About Religion

I’m obviously not saying that we should promote hate speech or allow it to go unchecked, but the free speech enthusiast in me isn’t convinced that legislation is the best way to combat hateful sentiments. Restricting speech that advocates religious hatred and incites hostility doesn’t make religious hatred disappear, it just pushes toxic sentiments underground where they can continue to fester and infect future generations beyond the state’s reach. (via Religion News Service)

Glenn Greenwald On Dean Baquet: A ‘Disturbing History’ Of Journalism ‘Subservient’ To National Security State

Glenn Greenwald joined HuffPost Live Friday to discuss Edward Snowden, the latest news on NSA spying and his recent book “No Place to Hide.” The Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist weighed in on the turmoil at the New York Times this week and had some choice words for incoming executive editor Dean Baquet, who with the LA Times in 2006, was accused of killing a story about collaboration between AT&T and the NSA. (via The Huffington Post)

Murdoch buying Murdoch – Nothing To Worry About?

When information leaked out last weekend about BSkyB’s proposal to buy 21stCentury Fox’s share of pay-TV channels Sky Italia and Sky Deutschland in order to build a Sky Europe brand, there was a flurry of interest in the business press. Given that Rupert Murdoch’s Fox owns 39% of BSkyB, 57% of Sky Deutschland and 100% of Sky Italia, you might have thought that this would raise some concerns amongst regulators, politicians and media commentators about potential anti-competitive behaviour and a lack of pluralism in a growing sector of European broadcasting. (via Media Reform Coalition)

BBC News Chief: #BringBackOurGirls Photo Error Caused Us ‘Anxiety’

Corporation’s use of viral image of girl who was not Nigerian and not kidnapped highlights need for social media verification (via The Guardian)

Sign up for the EJN newsletter and be informed of the latest events in ethical journalism.
Photo credit: Flickr CC Alexander Torrenegra