The Ethical Journalist

Integral to our courses is the belief that people improve their professional practice by taking time out to reflect on and reassess what they currently do in the workplace and by sharing their real life experiences with the other like minded professionals. As a result each course is unique and geared to the experiences of the individuals that are participating, which may result in the course content altering slightly from course to course. This short course will examine topics such as: Even our most prestigious news organisations have impassioned rows over ethical issues: Is it right to call the 9/11 bombers 'terrorists'? Should audiences be shown the grisly reality of wars? Why should a drive-by shooting in America grab bigger headlines than an earthquake in Asia? However, there will be a few central themes, such as: Covering war and terrorism Is the way news is covered racist? Moral panics and extraordinary popular delusions Is media regulation a sham? How conflicts of interests impact on truth-telling Digital manipulation of reality. We will also look at a range of case studies and apply moral reasoning to explore ethical issues.