Introduction
Integrity indicates the state of being honest, morally upright, and pure in one’s actions. The concept of integrity makes one earn the respect of the society, while the opposite draws insolence and ridicule from the members of the community. Integrity is important in all aspects of human life. It is especially important in the field of journalism. Devoid of integrity, it becomes hard for a journalist to carry out their responsibilities as enshrined in the laws of the land. The professionals find it hard to monitor the government and ensure that it remains accountable to the public. Television and radio news are some of the most trustworthy and reliable sources of information in many countries around the world. Members of the public use information from the television and radio stations in making decisions that are significant to their life.
In 1967, the Public Broadcasting law was amended with the major aim of protecting public broadcasting institutions from excessive control and interference in public matters in the U.S.A. With time, other countries borrowed the broadcasting amendment from the US and incorporated it in their constitutions. The amendments significantly addressed integrity in media.
Integrity in news reporting is demonstrated by such activities as the production of high-quality and reliable programs, social responsibility, and giving the audience the opportunity to contribute and share views about the content relayed by the various media houses. Editorial integrity is very important in news reporting. It is formed via such activities as public debates and discussions. It is also formed by engaging media experts and staff from schools of journalism. Experts in such fields as community work and philanthropy are also consulted. The core mission and objective of a public broadcasting organization should include, among others, supporting civil society groups, providing public education, and creating awareness in society through electronic media. The current paper revolves around integrity, ethics, and media law. To this end, the author discusses the various concepts applied in media to promote integrity and trust in media houses.
Integrity and Media Coverage
Total Coverage
Media houses earn public trust as a result of carrying out their work excellently, enhancing community inclusion, and upholding professional standards and practices. Coverage of complex and controversial matters should be carried out in a proper and professional manner, without discrimination or omission of some parts. Professionalism and non-discriminative undertakings will enhance the integrity of the journalists involved since transparency and accessibility are guaranteed for the audience. The content of the news presented to members of the public should be comprehensive. It should cover such areas as science, history, and current affairs taking place in the entire world (Leonardo, 2010).
The information should be made available in various forms, for example, through social networks. Media houses should govern their coverage and news reporting in ways that enhance the wellbeing and interests of members of the public. That way, the media houses will signify their devotion to truthfulness and credible coverage of events. The media houses will effectively exercise their freedom of expression as provided for in the constitution. The obligations highlighted above supersede personal and institutional agendas by enhancing public image (Spence, Alexandra, Quinn & Dunn, 2011).
Inclusion of Community Members and Diversity
Media houses should emphasize issues that respect the culture of the community and other activities. They should support the various attributes of the communities within which they are working. To this end, the media should contribute ideas with regard to cultural development in society. They should offer the public a robust forum for discussions and debate. An event that affects the lives of the people should be pursued and reported accurately and within the appropriate time. Integrity in journalism is enhanced in various ways. It includes taking into consideration different ideas from various areas, cultures, and beliefs in society. Integrity is also demonstrated in the way different programs are selected and presented (Spence et al., 2011).
The reasons why a certain program was aired or not aired should be availed to the audience upon request (Leonardo, 2010). Media houses must always value the diverse nature of their communities. The development helps in assessing the various needs and interests of the community. The media should acknowledge individuals from divergent backgrounds. Such individuals possess divergent experiences and perspectives. They are important sources of news. They should be encouraged to participate in broadcasting activities. Content and activities must always be tailored to meet the needs of society. Media programming activities should be treated with respect. People should be encouraged to share their ideas (Resnik & Curtis, 2011).
Transparency in Fundraising and Allocation
Activities related to fundraising should be carried out in a transparent manner to win the trust of donors and sponsors. Sponsors of different programs should be respected and terms under which such funds are received should be made open. Furthermore, a clear boundary should be established between the program sponsors and the set of working ethics and principles. Media houses should make their decisions in an open manner. Their financial statements should be made public for transparency purposes. The transparency is especially significant if the media houses are publicly owned.
All the activities carried out by the media house should be made open to the public or other significant stakeholders. However, there are various exceptions to this case. They include issues to do with employees and the organization’s right to privacy. The broadcasting houses should maintain consistency in editorial standards through collaborations and partnerships with the various stakeholders. The aim of such undertakings is to expand the media house’s capacity to serve and share with the audience, as well as enhance the timeliness and relevance of its work. The media house should maintain its defined editorial principles, even when in a partnership with other entities, such as sponsors (Rosenson, 2005).
Public Decency
Employees should conduct themselves with decency, both on and off duty, to enhance public trust and integrity. They should be able to distinguish between professional public media communication and other types of communication in society. In addition, the employees of media houses operating in a given society should always remain sensitive and alert to instances involving conflict of interests, which may arise between their personal responsibilities and public media responsibility. Furthermore, the media workers must always avoid making hasty judgments when dealing with members of the public. The implication here is that the employees should limit their involvement in public affairs or remain non-partisan in some activities for the sake of the public.
Journalists and other employees working in media houses should not involve themselves in groups whose agendas and activities are perceived to create controversy in society. To further enhance integrity in news reporting, the employees should not accept gifts, fees or favors from parties with an agenda of concealing materials of public interest. As such, employees are encouraged to uphold media integrity both in their personal and professional lives (Resnik & Curtis, 2011).
Respect Ideas
Media houses should assess the needs and interests of the community to inform their editorial decisions. The assessment will ensure that all relevant areas are covered effectively. Decision-makers should be able to identify instances involving conflict of interests with their working partners and remove themselves from such activities. Integrity policies should be discussed and debated periodically to assess their success, failure, and need for improvement. They must be reviewed and restructured occasionally, depending on the needs of the media house. Finally, various legal frameworks should be adopted to enhance the accountability of the media house. Such frameworks include educational and broadcasting laws at the state and federal levels (Resnik & Curtis, 2011).
When ideas are respected, media employees are able to interact and share ideas with their audience for the purpose of community building and problem-solving. The interaction between media employees and the public is conducted through talk shows, as well as online discussions and debates. To this end, experts and citizens share views and ideas with one another (Rosenson, 2005).
Accuracy, Impartiality, and Integrity in Reporting
Through integrity, the media can foster an informed and engaged public. Consequently, the media will enhance and promote democracy in society. The media should support individuals in making decisions about their lives and families, hence giving enhancing the quality of their life. To promote integrity among media houses, the validity of the source must be protected. The sources of information become vital tools in defense when problems arise.
Media houses must operate within set principles with regard to the collection of information to improve editorial decision-making processes. There are several principles that guide editorial news and editing. They include accuracy, whereby facts are verified before they are presented. Sources of information are provided when necessary to improve accuracy. The media fraternity should resist anonymity in some cases, especially with regard to opinions emanating from detractors, personal attacks, and baseless speculations. The media should practice impartiality and adopt a non-partisan approach when dealing with controversial topics, such as politics and election matters.
The media personnel should be prepared to receive constructive comments and corrections. They should take the appropriate action to improve precision in news reporting. The media should respond in a timely manner to assertions made by individuals not favored by their coverage. Failure to do so can destroy the reputation of the median house, negatively affecting its standing with regard to integrity (Rosenson, 2005).
Fairness to All
In news reporting, media houses should interrogate the transparency of public officials, leaders of non-profit organizations, business persons, and other public figures who strive for power to serve their own interests. All parties should be treated equally as provided for by the right of fair practice and ethics in journalism law. Journalists must avoid stereotyping on the basis of age, gender, sexual orientation, disability, and social status when dealing with members of certain groups. The coverage of the aforementioned areas should be conducted fairly to enhance integrity.
The media should be honest and transparent with its audience. It should be honest enough to acknowledge the work of other groups. Edited interviews should be preserved in their original form without adding or deleting any content. Audios, videos, and images processed electronically for clarity reasons should be handled carefully to avoid distortion. By doing so, the reliability of the material is increased, helping the audiences access and analyze the various episodes (Spence et al., 2011).
Proper Selection of Programs
Integrity in media reporting is enhanced by promoting the transparency of the programs selected and the content created. Journalists should be transparent with regard to how they gather and report news from various sources. They should be open to the procedure adopted in the creation of media content. The programs presented to the audience must be consistent with the overall mission and objective of the media house. The programs should be in accordance with the priorities established for the purposes of serving the public, based on the various aspects of the subject community and audience. The media should publish their mission statement on their official website, where the audience can easily access such information.
Practical considerations should be made to inform the volume of content for the benefit of the audience. If the content is not covered by the other media houses, it should be covered in detail by the subject media house. The coverage will help the audience understand the content clearly, satisfying their need.
The media is guided by the right to reputation, whereby destroying someone else’s reputation is illegal and must always be avoided (Spence et al., 2011). Media houses should have an editorial team that is capable of selecting relevant stories for broadcasting. The editorial staff must be able to accept suggestions about what should be covered. The team must encourage constructive criticism and comments. The names, positions, and contact information of the editorial staff should be made public to enhance integrity in reporting (Leonardo, 2010). The methods adopted in the topic selection are based on various considerations. The considerations include the significance of the issue to the subject community, and how the selected content gels with the objectives set by the media house. Such factors as the relevance of the topic to the audience, potential impact, timeliness, ability to meet the set editorial standards, and the capacity to bring a change in the community should also be considered in program selection (Head, Brown & Connors, 2008).
Appropriate Gathering of Information
Methods of gathering and presenting information should be made public to the audience upon request. By doing so, the media house will build public confidence with regard to its news reporting. The authenticity of the information gathered is supported by citations of public records, saved databases, and other publications. Individuals and organizations that provide additional information are acknowledged, provided the acknowledgment does not jeopardize their safety. Locations from where the facts broadcasted were taken should be made available by the media house (Crook, 2010).
Conclusion
Integrity is an indispensable virtue for media houses, and journalists who lack it end up as objects of ridicule in society. In contemporary society, journalism acts as a bridge between the government and its people. Journalism keeps the government on its toes, ensuring that it upholds public accountability. Media houses must, as a result, be free from the control of government officials and sponsors. The reason for this is that when media houses work in cohort with government officials, the relationship kills the credibility and reliability of the information presented to the public. Such a scenario can only be avoided by having an editorial staff that is composed of individuals of high integrity.
References
Crook, T. (2010). Comparative media law and ethics. New York: Taylor & Francis.
Head, B., Brown, J., & Connors, C. (2008). Promoting integrity: Evaluating and improving public integrity. Farnham: Ashgate Publishing Ltd.
Leonardo, B. (2010). Connecting America: The national broadband plan. Darby: DIANE Publishing.
Resnik, D., & Curtis, D. (2011). Representing Justice: Invention, controversy, and rights in city-states and democratic courtrooms. New Haven: Yale University Press.
Rosenson, B. (2005). The shadowlands of conduct: Ethics and state politics, American governance & public policy. Washington, D.C.: George Town University Press.
Spence, E., Alexandra, A., Quinn, A., & Dunn, A. (2011). Media, markets, and morals. Heboken: John, Wiley & Sons.