Ethics in the News
Did Sports Illustrated publish AI-generated content under bylines of non-existent authors with fake bios?
Charissa Thompson admits making up coaches’ quotes for Fox Sports, backtracks after social media fallout
Washington Post publishes graphic photos, videos from mass shootings to show ‘full scope’ of AR-15’s power
BBC anchor incorrectly reports IDF ‘targeted’ medical staff in Gaza; news organization makes on-air apology
Ex-Fox News producer sues, claiming network fired him for complaining about ‘false’ 2020 election coverage
Protesters accuse Western media of spreading misinformation and mischaracterizing Israel-Hamas conflict
Op-Ed: Covering Trump requires more care, preparation, diligence; ignoring him leaves him less examined
Editor: Colorado Newsline to end horse race election coverage, prioritize constituents’ interest over politicians’
Murdoch’s departure as Fox News leader expected to have little impact on conservative media landscape
Washington Examiner op-ed: Carlson recirculates conspiracy theory about Obama ‘to draw eyeballs and clicks’
Diversity in the News
Washington Post journalists showcase the richness of their Latino culture through personal essays
Investigative Project on Race and Equity carves its niche in Chicago’s innovative digital media ecosystem
Gannett hasn’t released demographics data as promised, raising questions among some of its journalists
Editor calls out Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen, who dismissed reporter’s story because of her Chinese heritage
Palestinian advocates say Western media coverage of Israel-Hamas conflict espouses racist tropes
Study: Most Black Americans see racially insensitive news coverage about Black people often or sometimes
Detroit News story celebrating history of its sports department omits contributions by any Black staffers
Atlanta magazine management scales back ‘progressive’ coverage in one of the ‘Blackest, queerest’ cities
CBS News and stations co-head Wendy McMahon named sole leader, with syndication oversight added
Former employees allege Gannett’s efforts to diversity newsrooms discriminated against white workers
Ethics Updates
Sep 20, 2023 • Be Accountable and Transparent Ethics Update Seek Truth and Report It
Updating reporting on a hit-and-run as more information is released
A video showing two apparent teenagers intentionally driving into a retired police chief riding his bicycle in Las Vegas went viral over the weekend. The Las Vegas Review-Journal’s coverage of the incident was heavily criticized by readers who posted screenshots of the Review-Journal’s obituary for the officer that was published on Aug. 18 for its use of “bike crash” in the headline. Thirteen days later, a source approached the reporter with the now-viral video and the reporter connected the source to the police. On Sunday, Elon Musk reposted one of the criticisms saying, “An innocent man was murdered in cold blood Read More
Sep 13, 2023 • Ethics Update Minimize Harm
Minimizing harm for families of homicide victims
“More Than A Number” by Justin Baxley is a project aimed at making it easier and more humane for families of homicide victims to engage with local media. Baxley focused on giving the families of crime victims more agency over how quickly and how often a media outlet contacts them (including choosing not to comment at all), ensuring more time to respond to journalists’ questions and having more of a say in how their loved one is portrayed. One of the pillars of the SPJ Code of Ethics is to minimize harm, “Ethical journalism treats sources, subjects, colleagues and members of the public Read More
Aug 16, 2023 • Ethics Update Seek Truth and Report It
False reporting on a child influencers death
For a three-month period in early 2018, child influencer Lil Tay took over the internet. But after going on “Good Morning America” and the drama around who was managing her, Lil Tay’s Instagram went dark in 2018 until Aug. 9 when a statement was posted saying she and her older half-brother had died unexpectedly. “Major media outlets published, and then walked back, stories about the teenager’s [supposed] death. (Her exact age is unclear, as reports have varied over the years.) But longtime followers, knowing her online persona, were wary from the get-go,” Angela Yang reported for NBC News. Some of Read More
More on ‘‘Seek Truth and Report It’’
Sep 2023 • Be Accountable and Transparent Ethics Update Seek Truth and Report It
Updating reporting on a hit-and-run as more information is released
Aug 2023 • Ethics Update Seek Truth and Report It
Aug 2023 • Be Accountable and Transparent Ethics Update Seek Truth and Report It
Jul 2023 • Ethics Update Minimize Harm Seek Truth and Report It
May 2023 • Be Accountable and Transparent Ethics Update Minimize Harm Seek Truth and Report It
More on ‘‘Minimize Harm’’
Sep 2023 • Ethics Update Minimize Harm
Jul 2023 • Ethics Update Minimize Harm
Jul 2023 • Ethics Update Minimize Harm Seek Truth and Report It
Jun 2023 • Ethics Update Minimize Harm
May 2023 • Be Accountable and Transparent Ethics Update Minimize Harm Seek Truth and Report It
More on ‘‘Act Independently’’
Jul 2023 • Act Independently Be Accountable and Transparent Ethics Update
Jun 2023 • Act Independently Be Accountable and Transparent Ethics Update
Nov 2022 • Act Independently Ethics Update
More on ‘‘Be Accountable and Transparent’’
Sep 2023 • Be Accountable and Transparent Ethics Update Seek Truth and Report It
Updating reporting on a hit-and-run as more information is released
Aug 2023 • Be Accountable and Transparent Ethics Update
Aug 2023 • Be Accountable and Transparent Ethics Update Seek Truth and Report It
Jul 2023 • Act Independently Be Accountable and Transparent Ethics Update
Jun 2023 • Act Independently Be Accountable and Transparent Ethics Update
November 29, 2023 • Ethics in the News Top Story
According to a second person involved in the creation of the Sports Illustrated content who also asked to be kept anonymous, that’s because it’s not just the authors’ headshots that are AI-generated. At least some of the articles themselves, they said, were churned out using AI as well. “The content is absolutely AI-generated,” the second source said, “no matter how much they say that it’s not.” After we reached out with questions to the magazine’s publisher, The Arena Group, all the AI-generated authors disappeared from Sports Illustrated’s site without explanation. Initially, our questions received no response. But after we published this story, an Continue Reading
November 15, 2023 • Top Story
Michigan State students use simple technology to track representation efforts
Journalism students at Michigan State University aren’t just asking questions and reporting on the diverse communities around them — they are looking inward, gauging their efforts to make their reporting more inclusive. A class offered at the university in East Lansing pushes its journalism students to document the demographics of the sources they interview for stories so they can track how closely they match the demographics of the communities they cover. The goal of the initiative, called Fair Chance Reporting, is for young reporters to identify who’s missing or underrepresented in their reporting over the course of the class. Continue Reading
May 16, 2023 • Top Story
ReNews Project revives defunct HBCU publications, community coverage
Wesley Wright wanted to bolster news media coverage of historically Black colleges and universities and nearby communities. His idea was to bypass local, traditional media and instead equip HBCU students with the tools and training they needed to take on the lofty task. Wright, with help from a few friends and associates, transformed his vision into the ReNews Project, which gives students at HBCUs the resources to develop or restart their college publications and eventually expand coverage to surrounding communities. The project launched in 2021, and Coppin State University in Baltimore was the first to get the ReNews treatment. Continue Reading
May 13, 2022 • Top Story
After George Floyd’s death, fashion editor pivots to covering race, culture
After nearly 20 years of interviewing designers, coordinating photo shoots and identifying fashion trends, Houston Chronicle fashion editor and writer Joy Sewing yearned for a change. “I was really trying to leave,” said Sewing, a native Houstonian. “I felt like I’d done all I could do in the fashion realm that I had. I felt I needed another challenge.” Then police killed George Floyd. “When George Floyd happened, I think a lot of journalists, particularly Black journalists who may not have been focusing in a big way on issues of race, kind of felt like they had to speak up,” Continue Reading
April 14, 2022 • Top Story
Op-ed writer challenges newspaper’s decision to inform readers of past crime
Steve Schulz’s social life often led him to downtown Minneapolis, where he’d attend ball games, go to the theater or just have drinks with friends. Since he was there so much, he decided to sell his house in the suburbs and get an apartment downtown, where he could walk to his favorite hangouts. Shortly after he arrived in 2019, the coronavirus shut down the city and police killed George Floyd, leading to numerous downtown protests, some of them ending with riots. There were other issues: noise from drag racers, more frequent sirens, more protests, more riots and rising crime. Continue Reading
In Depth: SPJ’s Code of Ethics
Avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived. Disclose unavoidable conflicts.
Learn more about this statement, and the rest of SPJ’s Code of Ethics, here.
This free platform helps you find diverse experts for your storiesAre you a journalist who wants to diversify the stories you tell by including more people of color while streamlining your search for reputable sources? This platform is especially for you.
Race & Gender Hotline: Get fast answers to sensitive questionsSPJ has editors on call with experience resolving race and gender issues in news stories. They respond quickly to your questions and offer concrete advice.
Contact our Ethics Hotline if you’re faced with a tough ethical decisionThere’s often no easy solution for ethical issues, but we’ll coach you through yours using principles outlined in SPJ’s Code of Ethics.
Dig through our toolbox for resources to help with ethical issuesThe toolbox for journalists has information on a wide range of topics, such as ethical considerations for data visualizations. Find the topic that interests you.