Aidan White Journalists covering the earthquake disaster in Turkey and Syria walk a fine ethical line between doing their job as reporters while at the same time giving practical help to people overwhelmed by the tragedy. In the critical hours after the earthquake journalists joined humanitarian aid workers in helping to save people trapped under collapsed buildings and piles of rubble. Journalists have played a huge part in relief efforts said Baris Altintas, co-founder and currently co-Director of the Media and Law Studies Association (MLSA).  “Many were instrumental in getting people o ..read more

By Lidija Sabados “I am not currently working because of the curfew, and I now have just a little milk for my child,” an unnamed migrant domestic worker and mother told Tamkeen, a Jordanian legal organization working on migrant rights. “I have not been able to travel, and I hope the curfew will not last long.” In March of this year, during the initial strict lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 600 domestic workers contacted Tamkeen to report that they were unable to provide for their daily needs of food, and other basic requirements. Amongst them were more than thirty mothers who ..read more

This article is made available to mark World News Day, 28 September 2022 and is published with permission. By Dame Frances Cairncross Do you still buy a daily newspaper? Or perhaps a Sunday paper? If you do either, you are probably aged over 40, and in a dwindling minority in most parts of the world. You may well still look at the news on your phone, perhaps checking the “snippets” that Google News offers you for free. You may watch the news on television or listen to the radio. But you are much less likely to pay for news that your parents were – let alone your grandparents. In one sense, th ..read more

This article is made available to mark World News Day, 28 September 2022 and is published with permission. Read the original post here. By Kathy English Journalists do our jobs in the belief that journalism – at its best- matters to citizens the world over. As journalists around the globe unite on this World News Day to proclaim publicly that journalism makes a difference we must not turn away from the discouraging fact – as stated in the 2022 Reuters Institute, Digital News Report – that,  “the connection between journalism and the public may be fraying”. Journalists believe wholehearte ..read more

This article is made available to mark World News Day, 28 September 2022 and is published with permission. Read the original post here. By David Walmsley Making a positive difference to someone’s life is the greatest gift a journalist can give. Perhaps an individual is heard for the first time, or an injustice is settled.  Those moments when a news editor picks up a phone to hear a scared voice say, ‘you are all I have left, I have nowhere else to turn’. The last stand between hope and defeat.  It is a sacred contract, as old as journalism itself yet the tenor of our times would try ..read more

See the EJN 6-point guide to ethical reporting on domestic violence Download By Mina Tumay and Hannah Storm Journalists have a responsibility to ethically report on domestic violence, bringing accuracy and context to their stories. They can also play an important role by ensuring their coverage focuses fairly on victims, survivors, and families impacted by the abuse, which may in turn make it easier for those at risk of violence to seek support. These were the overriding messages from an online discussion hosted by the Ethical Journalism Network to coincide with the International day for t ..read more

This article is part of our Ethics in Practice series with Internews Europe By Karim Bernard Dende With 11,395 registered cases and 308 deaths (as of November, 7,2020), the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is the Central African country most affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. The central and provincial governments have enforced social distance measures, travel restrictions and lockdowns but Covid-19 continues to spread, most notably in the conflict-torn Eastern provinces. Considering that over 90% of households rely on small informal business, providing day-to-day revenues, lockdown has deva ..read more

By Hannah Storm, EJN Director Conversations around ethical journalism have traditionally focussed on the content created by people in the media. But until we really start recognising the link between newsroom cultures and the content we create, we are doing a disservice to any discussion of journalism ethics. Until we create newsrooms and environments that really subscribe to the notions of humanity, accountability, accuracy, fairness and independence, we stand very little chance of really creating journalism that does the same. Ethics is also about duty of care. It’s about looking a ..read more

The following article is part of our ‘Ethics in Practice’ series in partnership with Internews Europe about reporting on Covid-19 By Victoria Dangond La Guajira is an arid department with scarce resources in the extreme north of Colombia, on the border with Venezuela. In this region, particularly affected by Covid-19, national and international politics converge in response to Venezuelan migration and there is a strong presence of humanitarian organizations. La Guajira is also home to more than half a million members of the Wayuu indigenous community, whose voices have been silenced while thei ..read more

By Hannah Storm, EJN Director Responsible reporting about mental health and suicide can help prevent suicide, but sensationalist and stigmatising reporting puts vulnerable people at risk. That is the view, which they say is backed by solid research, put forward by the creators of a toolkit on suicide reporting[1], Dr Ann Luce and Dr Sallyanne Duncan, who were among the speakers at an Ethical Journalism Network panel on the responsible coverage of suicide and mental health. Designed to help journalists be confident their reporting is responsible, ethical and meets global standards, the Suicide ..read more