Welcome to another bumper edition of Ethical Journalism Bulletin. If you don't find what you are looking for immediately, keep scrolling to browse the latest news on media ethics from around the world.
The EJN presented the Accountable Journalism database of ethical codes to 52 participants at a meeting of the Middle East and North Africa media development community in Rome on 10April. The coordination event was organised by the EU-funded MedMedia project.
Tom Law announced that the EJN will be working with the American University in Cairo (AUC) and the Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ) to update the Accountable Journalism database with Arabic media codes, and to translate relevant codes from English into Arabic and from Arabic to English. Get in touch if you have ethical codes to add to the database.
SPORTS: In other accountable journalism news, AccountableSportsJournalism.org was launched this week as "A Gateway to Ethics Guidelines, Stylebooks, Ombudsmen and beyond".
Respect Words: Ethical Journalism Against Hate Speech
EJN director, Aidan White, took part in a debate on hate speech in Dublin, Ireland on 11 April 2017 with Michael Foyle of the Nation Union of Journalists-Ireland and Peter Feeney, Ireland’s Press Ombudsman. The event was part of the ‘Respect Words: Ethical Journalism Against Hate Speech' project, which aims to combat racist and xenophobic projections in the European media.
Last week's constitutional referendum in Turkey was "contested on an unlevel playing field, and the two sides in the campaign did not have equal opportunities" according to international observers. OSCE observers reported that "while the technical aspects of the process were well administered, voters were not provided with impartial information about key aspects of the reform, and limitations on fundamental freedoms had a negative effect", according to this article from the OSCE. Read the full statement here.
"Journalists in Turkey are enduring the worst period of repression in living memory", Ceren Sözeri - an adviser to the EJN and Associate Professor and faculty member at the Communications Department of Galatasaray University - wrote in the EJN's recent Ethics in the News report. Ceren's article provides excellent background on the dire situation for independent journalism in Turkey.
How three European media organisations are bringing news to refugees
WAN-IFRA's Simone Flueckiger writes: Three leading media organisations in Europe have joined forces in a bid to bring trustworthy information to migrants and refugees, and dispel rumours and false reports spread by human traffickers. German broadcaster Deutsche Welle, France 24’s parent organisation France Médias Monde, and Italian press agency ANSA launched the news platform InfoMigrants at the end of March. Aimed at people from the Middle East, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Sub-Saharan Africa, especially those considering fleeing to Europe, its goal is to explain the perils of the journey, and provide refugees and migrants with verified and balanced information.
Good digging from Duarte Romero-Varela, a data journalist at TotallyCommunication, on this misleading UK map of migration from February this year. The Daily Telegraphhave since amended it.
New York Times defends hiring extreme climate denier: ‘millions agree with him'
Dr. Joe Romm, Founding Editor of Climate Progress, writes about the controversy for ThinkProgress: Amidst backlash and subscription cancellations for hiring extreme climate science denier, Bret Stephens, the New York Times offered a stunning defense: There are “millions of people who agree with him.” With that ‘logic’, the Times could hire as a columnist former Imperial Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan David Duke — or a flat earther or someone who thinks vaccines pose a health hazard. After all, millions agree with them.
Facebook Taking Money For HoaxAdverts Despite Fake News Crackdown Pledge Steven Hopkins, Assistant News Editor for HuffPost UK News, writes: Facebook is promoting paid-for hoaxes about Lord Sugar, Professor Stephen Hawking and the Queen to their users despite recent promises to crack down on fake news, an investigation has found.
Facebook’s News Literacy Advice Is Harmful to News Literacy
Mike Caulfield, Director of Blended & Networked Learning Washington State University Vancouver, writes: Facebook rolled out the largestmedia literacy campaign in the history of the world. Unfortunately, most of what it contained was bad advice.
How to debunk fake news and boost newsroom collaboration in one go?
Emilie Kodjo, Director of Communications and Public Affairs for the Global Editors Network, writes: With the first round of the French presidential election just a few days away, the collaborative platform CrossCheck, an initiative by First Draft News, initially between, Les Echos, France 24 The Observers and Les Décodeurs from Le Monde, is making sure that the democratic process is not tampered with by questionable news sources.
Bob Calver, Diane Kemp, Marcus Ryder, have authored a thought-provoking and practical guide to diversity and inclusive reporting. "With introductions by respected journalists setting out their personal experiences of difference – from race, gender and class to sexuality, age and regionalism – the book offers useful suggestions to help you bring Everybody In." Download a free copy here.
If you would like to support the Ethical Journalism Network by translating our guidelines into you language contact Tom Law: tom.law@ethicaljournalismnetwork.org
Visit the Accountable Journalism database of codes of media ethics
