NUJ CODE OF CONDUCT

1. A journalist has a duty to maintain the highest professional and ethical standards.
Notes:

    1. Uphold the code itself (all of it – not just the bits that suit you).
    2. Report breach of code to FOC/MOC – third party.
    3. Ethical = good, solid careful hard work in the public interest and for the benefit/entertainment of your readers/listeners.
    4. Unethical = anything which short changes the reader/listeners. Lazy, inaccurate, boring, stupid, malicious or self-interested journalism.
    5. Highly unethical = any attempt to benefit personally from position as a journalist other than by doing a good honest job for readers/listeners.
    6. “Passing off” (stealing) and other dishonest behaviour towards other journalists. “Cashing in” on the reputation of journalists as a whole, or making life difficult for journalists (eg abuse of NUJ card).
    7. Allegiance to the profession (other journalists) and to reader and not ONLY duty to particular title, editor or employer.
    8. Smashing up phone boxes is wrong. Dog does not bite dog.
    9. Remember Veronica (and the others).

     

    2. A journalist shall at all times defend the principle of the freedom of the Press and other media in relation to the collection of information and the expression of comment and criticism.

Notes:

    1. Collective action – eg Sinn Fein broadcasting ban.
    2. Inform readers/viewers of any restrictions applied to report.

(c ) Generally to assist journalists facing restriction, intimidation, etc, through trade   union and political action. Eg contribution to union legal funds, etc (membership of union). Lobbying function of the union.
(d) Defend the right of free expression even of unpopular persons organisations, in line with normal editorial considerations. Example British National Party.

 

3. A journalist shall strive to ensure that the information he/she disseminates is fair and accurate, avoid the expression of comment and conjecture as established fact and falsification by distortion, selection or misrepresentation.

Notes:

    1. “Fair” – intention and lack of malice. All criticism balanced. Unfair is NOT the same as bland, however.
    2. “Accurate” – all FACTS checked and double checked. Never write down or broadcast a “FACT” which has not been checked. This includes the spelling of names for example.
    3. “Distortion, selection or mispresentation” – main danger here is “selective quoting” and, possibly, “reverse quotation”.

(d)  For broadcast, the danger is unfair editing. Reports should be a balance summary. LEGAL aspect – loss of qualified privilege

    1. Avoid writing about people you know or strongly approve or disapprove of – it is not possible to be “fair”. Declare any  “vested interest”.
    2. A student misconception: you can “trick” somebody into saying something/ confessing to something, etc. You can’t. Just report what they’ve got to say, balance it and let the reader decide.
    3. “A truth told with bad intent is worse than a thousand lies” – William Blake.
    4. The “Reuters Principles” – Fast, Accurate and Fair

 

More on distortion/selective reporting
FACTS ABOUT JOHN SMITH
He has yellow teeth and is kind to animals
He is generous to his friends, but rarely pays his bills on time
He failed all his arts exams but is a brilliant physicist
He gets on badly with people at work but is extremely popular with most people he meets
He is regarded as extremely good looking but has a bad case of body odour
He gets drunk often when he has leisure time, but has never been seen to take a drink at work
He works very hard but is accident prone

JOHN SMITH:
A smelly, accident prone drunk who does not pay his bills, failed most of his exams, has yellow teeth and gets on badly with people he works with.

JOHN SMITH:
A brilliant, good-looking, extremely popular and hard-working physicist who is kind to animals, generous to his friends, never been seen drinking by his workmates.

 

 4. A journalist shall rectify promptly any harmful inaccuracies, ensure that correction and apologies receive due prominence and afford the right of reply to persons criticised when the issue is of sufficient importance.

Notes:

    1. “Harmful” inaccuracies – (nobody’s perfect - you can survive a few innocent mistakes)
    2. Be alert “Harm” has legal implications – people are entitled to damages
    3. Lack of intention in errors is no excuse if there’s damage
    4. It’s like knocking somebody over with a car
    5. Failure to admit to an error becomes MALICE - KEY CONCEPT
    6. Malice destroys any legal defence you may have in defending an article against a legal action for compensation.

(g) I you realise you have made a mistake – own up to it at once. Anything else only makes it worse.

 

 5. A journalist shall obtain information, photographs and illustrations only by straightforward means. The use of other means can be justified only by over-riding considerations of the public interest. The journalist is entitled to exercise a personal conscientious objection to the use of such means.

Notes:

    1. “Subterfuge” – meaning and technique
    2. The need to immediately identify yourself when working as a journalist
    3. The exceptions (in the public interest)
    4. The public interest – The Rock on Which We Stand.  KEY CONCEPT
    5. Self-serving and hypocritical use of The Public Interest
    6. Investigative journalism and “camera in a bag” TV – ITC prior approval
    7. On the record/ off the record.  KEY CONCEPT
    8. “personal conscientious objection” – difficult in non-union shop.

(i)   Abuses – Gordon Kaye case (Daily Star)

  1. Subject to the justification by over-riding considerations of the public interest, a journalist shall do nothing which entails intrusion into private grief and distress.

Notes:

    1. Mainly photography – “grief detector” long-lens
    2. The “death knock” – danger for local newspaper reporters. Check with police.

(c ) behaviour at funerals

 

6. A journalist shall protect confidential sources of information.

Notes:

    1. ON THE RECORD/ OFF THE RECORD
    2. Protection of sources – AN ABSOLUTE OBLIGATION
    3. Bill Goodwin case – “In certain circumstances willing to face personal risk”.
    4. “Blind” sources “according to sources, etc” – the effects of abuse
    5. “journalists” who reveal sources – reviled, hated and held in contempt. Careers are nasty, brutish and short
    6. The law of confidentiality – complicated. See McNae’s.

     

7.A journalist shall not accept bribes nor shall he/she allow other inducements to influence the performance of his/her professional duties.

(a ) “Freebies” – and malice

    1. Freesheets, amateur journalism, L!ve TV, cheap broadcast production, etc
    2. Financial journalism – “City Slickers” – also a criminal offence, possibly [SEE ALSO – CODE POINT 11 – “private information”
    3. Slander of Goods/ Malicious Falsehood, etc – care needed
    4. No such thing as a free lunch. Pay your own way.

(e)  Corruption is indivisible. Bend over backwards…

  1. A journalist shall not lend himself/herself to the distortion or suppression of the truth because of advertising or other considerations.

(a ) “Advertorial” – consumer magazines
(b) BBC and ITC guidelines – re: endorsements
            ( c) Beware the ad manager – its not his/her career on the line.
            (d) The danger of freesheets and other 100% advertising sponsored media
(e) Commercial broadcasting is regulated re: advertorial. Freesheets have only the union. 

 

7. A journalist shall only mention a person's race, colour, creed, illegitimacy, marital status (or lack of it), gender or sexual orientation if this information is strictly relevant. A journalist shall neither originate nor process material which encourages discrimination, ridicule, prejudice or hatred on any of the above-mentioned grounds.

    1. Main danger is crime reporting “Black mugger” etc
    2. But if race is part of the story mention it (eg racial attack)
    3. GRATUTIOUS mentions
    4. How the Daily Telegraph used to get round it – “Rastafarian mugger”  etc
    5. Covered by “highest standards” anyway
    6. “Process material” is extremely controversial. A 20 year battle inside the union over whether or not racists can be quoted. Would appear to contradict “freedom of speech”. No case of a union member being disciplined because of “process material”.  May also contradict law of land – re: Human Rights Act. Frequent debates at ADM.

    8. A journalist shall not take private advantage of information gained in the course of his/her duties, before the information is public knowledge.

    1. Financial Journalism/ share values
    2. “City Slickers” case - Piers Morgan

    8. A journalist shall not by way of statement, voice or appearance endorse by advertisement any commercial produce or service save for the promotion of his/her own work or of the medium by which he/she is employed.

 

 ALSO

 

PCC Code of Conduct ('Editor's Code')

OFCOM guidelines (additional factors for broadcast journalists) - taste and decency, etc

BBC Guidelines