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Markkula Center for Applied Ethics

Journalism and Media Ethics

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

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.

Navigate here to Learn More News Distribution Ethics Recommendations, 2022 Image of hands holding a mobile phone which has the text
Navigate here to Learn More News Distribution Ethics Recommendations, 2022
News Distribution Ethics Recommendations, 2022

The News Distribution Roundtable recommends that news platforms and aggregators make their distribution mechanics more transparent and constructs a set of guidelines based on rights, harms, and discourse. 

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Navigate here to Meet the JME Council Journalism and Media Ethics Council
Journalism and Media Ethics Council

As ethical issues in the media are increasingly relevant to today’s climate this team of professionals from public, private, and academic sectors collaborates with the Ethics Center to identify and prioritize complex issues.

Navigate here to Meet the JME Council Journalism and Media Ethics Council Meet the JME Council
Navigate here to Learn More Solidarity & Ethical Journalism
Solidarity & Ethical Journalism

Instead of one opinion in an assortment, social justice – defined as dignity for all – is a foundational moral principle from which journalistic duties take root.


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Navigate here to Learn More Ethical Considerations for Student Reporters and Editors
Ethical Considerations for Student Reporters and Editors

Is it ethical for a student journalist to cover a friend’s organization? If the university asks for a story to be removed or changed, is a university (student-run) newspaper editor obligated to comply? If students who are sources for a story wish to remain anonymous, should a student journalist still use their quotes?


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Subramaniam Vincent

Director, Journalism and Media Ethics

Subramaniam Vincent