Director, Journalism and Media Ethics
408-551-7070
svincent
Subramaniam (Subbu) Vincent is director for the Journalism and Media Ethics program. Subbu's focus is on developing tools and frameworks to help advance new norms in journalism practice, ethical news product design and new vocabulary and signals to help the public process and demand ethical media. During 2017-18, Subbu was Tech Lead for The Trust Project at the Markkula Center. Prior to working for the Center, he was a 2016 John S Knight fellow at Stanford University. In his media career, he was publisher and editor-in-chief for two news magazines in Bangalore, India. Prior to that, he was a software engineer in Silicon Valley. READ FULL BIO
Recent Publications
“Our Opinion: Recommendations for Publishing Opinion Journalism on Digital Platforms”, NewsQ technical recommendations paper co-authored with Patricia Lopez, Opinions Editor, Minneapolis Star Tribune. (Inputs from David Agraz, Leona Allen Ford, Jon Allsop, Rochelle Riley, and Rebecca Traister.)
"Understanding the Demand-side of Misinformation and Analyzing Solutions", chapter in "Fake News: Real Issues in Modern Communication", book published by Peter Lang in 2020. Editors: Susan Drucker, Russell Chun.
"Ethics-Driven Product Management for News, contribution with Don Heider" in "Product Management in Journalism and Academia" forum series published in Journalism and Mass Communications Quarterly, June 2020.
Articles by Subbu Vincent
Announcing the Journalism Source Diversity Dashboard and Monitor
A new application helps journalists track the diversity of the expert quotes used in article drafts, providing real-time updates and helping reporters ensue equitable representation of the communities the cover.
The News Distribution Ethics (NDE) Roundtable
How might news platforms and products ensure that ethical journalism on chronic issues is not drowned out by the noise of runaway political news cycles?
Collective Human Agency to Make Change Isn’t Inherently Ethical, Here’s Why
In a comparison of the summer 2020 Black Lives Matter protests and riots and the January 6, 2021 protests and insurrection, there are important similarities and distinct differences.
What Does it Mean to Reinstate Donald J. Trump’s Account on Facebook?
Subramaniam Vincent and Courtney Davis ’21 of the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics provide comment to Facebook’s oversite board on the ethical considerations of Donald Trump’s deplatforming.
The Striking Duality in America’s Democracy Gap and Journalism’s Challenges with Race
The news media has historically oversimplified and stereotyped coverage of people of color in general and Asian-American communities in particular.
How Social Media Has Harmed the Growth of Democratic Culture by Design
By their very design, social media platforms have offered equal opportunity to sellers of “Big Lies,” conspiracy theories, and political disinformation.
Ethics Center to Build Toolkit to Support Newsroom Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
In January 2021, the Journalism and Media Ethics Program at the Ethics Center is set launch a new and timely prototype project with funding from the Google News Initiative (GNI).
Reconciliation … Between Whom and About What?
Before reconciliation can be achieved in our country, we need to understand the actual problem, including who needs to be brought together and on what they’re divided.
The Ethics of Journalists ‘Covering’ Claudia Conway
Should the media “cover” Kellyanne Conway’s daughter and her posts on TikTok?
How Should Journalists Report a Scientific Study?
A three-step process and a framework of questions to make ethical reporting decisions, with recent convalescent plasma reporting as an example.
How Newsweek Missed the Circular Reasoning in ‘Kamala Harris Eligibility’ Op-ed
An opinion article that ran in Newsweek included ethically questionable assumptions by the author about Kamala Harris’ citizenship.
The #GeorgeFloyd Reckoning: America's Narratives Finally Collide
The George Floyd protests highlight differences between White and Black America’s dual narratives.
5 Media Literacies We Need Online
To accurately interpret our media today, it’s important we understand a few basic concepts, or “literacies” as Subbu Vincent refers to them.
‘Values,’ Not ‘Trust,’ is American Journalism’s Great Challenge
In today’s politicized society, trust in media is a common refrain, however values need to be addressed first.
The #Coronavirus Exposes an Unhealthy Commonality Between Breaking News and Social Media
Both traditional journalism and social media are unwilling to reconsider their newsworthiness exemptions for politicians. This is particularly problematic in the midst of a global public health crisis because it drives unethical behavior in society.
Alright, Don’t Ban Political Ads, but Can We Disable Likes and Shares?
Despite Twitter’s, Google’s and Facebook’s varying guidelines for handling political ads, the largest platforms still require additional guardrails to protect our democracy.
Ad Wars, Deception and the Missing American Public
With political advertising, a convened American public, where speech and counter-speech are offered in context, does not have a seat at the table.
Will Facebook’s News Tab be for ‘the Public’ and the Newsfeed for the ‘Users’?
Will Facebook's imminent News Tab feature help the public more seamlessly access credible local and national journalism without stumbling on junk along the way? This is the demand-side question.
The Ethics of Facebook’s Justifications to Exempt Hate and Lies by Politicians
New Facebook policy grants wide berth to politicians’ speech in newsfeed.
CNN’s Invoking the NOAA’s Response on Hurricane Bombing was Crafty and Ethical
The president’s interest in nuking hurricanes got into the news cycle last month, but one CNN reporter’s news article is an example of thoughtful work under deadline.
Breaking News Needs Nutrition from the ‘Truth Sandwich’
Ethical journalism practices require that presidential Tweets not serve as the story.
An Ethics Report Card: 3 Dilemmas for News Coverage of Mass Shootings
The news media is making progress on how to responsibly and ethically report on mass shootings.
Why Facebook Left up the “Drunk Pelosi” Video but YouTube Took It Down
A short guide to where Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube disagree on content moderation.
Julian Assange and the Freedom of the Press
How do the U.S. DOJ’s espionage-linked charges against Julian Assange bear press freedom?
Was the Mainstream Media’s “Walls Closing in …” Narrative Ethical?
This article analyzes some of the media's early judgment of presumed guilt for the Trump campaign's alleged collusion with Russia.
Reparations: The Missing Chapter in America’s "Pragmatic" Quest for Justice to African Americans
Ethics and the argument for reparations.
