Ethics Night, by Yaniza Creamer
We continued to talk about
Public Relations and the Code of Ethics. For last week’s homework, Professor
Piacente had us bring in some stories that violated the Code of Ethics.
Story that was shared
·
Mary Margaret
o
TIME magazine they darkened OJ Simpson's
skin when writing about race. Journalists should avoid stereotyping because it
violates the Code of Ethics
Question
that was asked
·
Emma had a
question on anonymous sources, asking if they are credible enough. The answer
is that, it is up to the journalist to believe that they are using a credible
source.
During class we did a public
relations activity. The activity was a debate; the class broke up into groups.
Each group received a tough ethics case. For the assignment
·
Groups
read/discussed their case away from the rest of class
·
Groups write
three persuasive bullet points to back up their decision on whether/how to do a
story.
·
When turn comes,
spokesmen 1 explains the case to the class
·
Spokesman 2
reads lead or summary to class
·
Group takes
questions from class & professor
The groups were
·
Group 1 Lauren
and Feiras
·
Case
o
Husband of Molly
Smith, the Arlington (VA) County Child Protection Services Director, failed to
register as a child molester when the family moved to Virginia three years ago.
Her husband was convicted in Oregon in 2001 and did not register as a sex offender
(as is required by law) in Virginia. Is the crime that took place four years
earlier worth reporting? Off the record you’re told it had been unusually
serious abuse-rape of the daughter, then 10, for six months. Molly Smith said
she has no idea it was going on until an officer came to their door to tell her
that her husband had been arrested.
o
Lauren and
Feiras decision
§
They decided to
run the story about the how the husband was not originally registered to begin
with
o
The class’ input
§
Tell the whole
story about what happened four years ago and present.
·
Group 2 Grace
and Juliana
·
Case
o
Popular Sherriff
Forest Sebring makes sexist comments during discussion of a plan to house female
inmates for the first time in Monroe County, Pa. During the meeting, most male
officials say they feel woman prisoners would pose numerous problems. Sheriff
Sebring then says, “Every woman you get in over there (at the jai) will have
some kind of complication. She has to be recycled.”
o
Grace and
Juliana’s decision
§
Use this is a
local story and to run it, but not use the sheriff’s comment in the lead
o
Class’ input
§
To use the quote
in the lead and make what he said seem important
·
Group 3 Emily
and Ben G
·
Case
o
A 25-year-old
man was found hanging from a tree in his backyard. Sheriff’s deputies are
investigating, but wont say much. The young man was a well-known teacher of the
physically and mentally disabled in the community. The official report says that
it was due to sexual asphyxia. This practice, is called autoerotic
asphyxiation, involving attempting to reach a heightened sexual orgasm by
cutting off oxygen during masturbation. Turns out up to 1,000 people die yearly
in the U.S. from sexual asphyxiation.
·
Emily and Ben’s
decision
o
To keep the
story but to make the focus on awareness on autoerotic asphyxiation.
·
Class’ input
o
Really depends
where the paper is being used, small town or city. Either tells the story on
how the well-known man died or to make the focus on creating awareness
throughout the community.
·
Group 4 Emma and
Nick
·
Case
o
Firefighter Dave
Norman dies in a furniture warehouse fire. He is a 17-year veteran of the
department. You learn Normal was a fall-drown drunk at the time of his death.
Turns out he’d been off duty at the time of the fire, in a bar. He finished his
13th beer and drove to the blaze. Norman was one of four firemen
working on north side of the four-story building. Norman turned and walked into
a parking meter as the other three sprinted to safety. The wall fell on him and
that was that.
o
Emma and Nick’s
decision
§
Talk about how
he was drunk but not say he was 13 beers in.
o
Class’ input
§
Agreed with Emma
and Nick because the autopsy report states that he was drunk and that will
eventually come out.
·
Group 5 Rebecca
and Jennifer
·
Case
o
On the train you
wind up sitting behind a guy who looks familiar. Turns out its former FBI
Director Jeremy Johnson. Johnson is possibly drunk and is talking loudly to his
friend in the adjacent seat. You can hear the conversation clearly. Johnson
boasts that under his direction, the FBI routinely used the Patriot Act to
question, “anybody we felt like”. “If they even looked like they might be
guilty of something, we hauled ‘em in and kept ‘em locked up until they proved
they were innocent.” When he finished, you step around and identify yourself as
a reporter. You ask for additional comments. Johnson goes on to describe two
specific cases, with his friend asking questions that reveal startling details
about the detention of innocent people. He confirms that everything he said was
true, “and it’s about time it all came out.”
o
Rebecca and
Jennifer’s decision
§
Run the story
but do not say that he was drunk
o
Class’ input
§
To run the story
but it might be difficult if Johnson later then says he was drunk during the
talk.
·
Group 6 Yaniza
and Andrew
·
Case
o
The person on
the phone tells you about a local family saddled with huge medical bills. The
parents are unemployed and do not have insurance, and their four-year-old
daughter has a rare from of cancer. A fund drive is being planned. You decide
to run the story. Then the phone rings again. A family with a similar plight has
the same request. Do you say yes or no? Should you adopt a policy whereby you
give uniform play to everyone?
o
Yaniza and
Andrew’s decision
§
Do not run the
other story because then more people will call you with the same problem
o
Class’ input
§
It is difficult,
maybe have a “cancer corner” or perhaps share the other story as well.
·
Group 7 Alyssa
and Stefani
·
Case
o
A veteran cop
was found shot dead in his cruiser in a mall parking lot. Early reports say he
was killed in the line of duty. However there was powder burns on his hands. It
wasn’t murder, it was suicide. The dead officer was no career criminal. He was
a father of four whose family has been devastated by death, illness and
mountainous financial problems in the months prior to his suicide. If the story
gets out that it was a suicide, his family will be deprived of $225,000 death
benefit awarded when a cop dies in the line of duty.
o
Alyssa and
Stefani’s decision
§
Minimize harm
and preserve his reputation by saying he was killed in the line of duty
o
Class’ input
§
Tell the people
that it was suicide because the truth will eventually come out especially since
the medical examiner’s office confirms that it was a suicide.
·
Group 8 Juliana
and Lindsey
·
Case
o
You were sent
out to do a story about the first baby born in the New Year. You find the
mother/baby at a local hospital and begin the interview and find out that the
mother had Sam, the newborn because her older son “needs a younger brother,
he’s so hyper. “You also find out that the mother lives upstairs from her
parents, receives welfare checks, and wouldn’t change the situation fro
anything.
o
Juliana and Lindsey’s
decision
§
Run the story on
how Sam was the first baby born in the New Year and disregard the fact that she
receives welfare checks.
o
Class’ input
§
Possibly forget
about the fact that she her baby was the first born into the new year and write
a better story on how she is on welfare checks.
Homework for next week’s
class:
·
Review Chapter
on Public Relations
·
Polar Bear press
release story due on Friday at 12
o
“Mourns” could
be a good term to use
o Include but do not focus on the other animal deaths
Highlight that Homer was zoo's oldest bear
·
Read the handout
that was given to us about PR by Business Wire
·
Look up Exxon
Valdeez and read about it. Be prepared to discuss from a PR perspective
