Misinformation, disinformation, and extremism online have intensified, and the public, news industry, and technology sector continue to grapple with how to resolve these problems. The Journalism and Media Ethics program is developing a range of initiatives that advance the following three aims:
- Giving journalists the crucial background and framework needed for ethical journalism.
- Giving the public a voice in shaping and understanding journalism.
- Using ethical principles to frame the design and delivery of news, social media, and search products.
The Latest from Journalism & Media Ethics
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.
Social Media and Content Moderation: Why ‘Dangerous Individuals and Organizations’ Policies are not Enough
Facebook’s and Twitter’s post-by-post enforcement model inadequately defends against nuanced and coordinated incitement campaigns, such as those committed by Donald Trump leading up to and after the January 6th insurrection at the Capital.
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.
About the Journalism and Media Ethics program
The end of traditional "gatekeeping" has signaled a seismic shift in how narratives are framed, developed, distributed, socialized, and discussed. For some communities, this is troubling because it threatens a longstanding social order. For others, particularly those who have been ignored or sidelined by traditional gatekeepers, this is a tremendous moment of opportunity for greater inclusion. At the same time, journalism's financial sustainability continues to be in doubt.
Too often, the hardest and interdisciplinary problems with ethical implications are being identified only after editorial, business, and technology decisions have been incorporated into products and narratives. The Markkula Center for Applied Ethics is uniquely well-positioned to provide ethical frameworks to help stakeholders proactively identify and analyze normative questions from the early stages to later in delivery cycles, while at the same time enriching the ongoing debates in these spheres.
We are excited to supply a more comprehensive approach to applied journalism and media ethics. We are dedicated to helping media producers, journalists, product designers, members of the public, and critics develop ways to address pressing -- and persistent -- ethical dilemmas that continue to have wide-reaching consequences for us all.
