Check out the new SPRC podcast
Looking to learn more about New Voices and the First Amendment? Check out SPRC’s first in a series of podcasts that will highlight issues of importance to empower student voices.
The first installment of “Conversations at the Schoolhouse Gate” features Neha Madhira from Prosper High School (Texas) and discusses her staff’s fight through prior review and censorship.
Read MoreWhat are ethics?
Laws indicate what journalists must do, while ethics indicate what they should do.
Rooted in ethics, responsible and free journalism adheres to applicable laws and operates using professional standards to enhance student media’s reach and impact. Journalism, truly the cornerstone of democracy, starts at the scholastic media level, where students learn the legal and ethical implications of free media that make the United States unique among nations.
Guideline for staff manual
Student media should avoid mixing ethics guidelines with staff manual processes. While processes or procedures can include the verbs “will” and “must,” guidelines should be framed with “should” and “could.”
Why does our staff need ethics guidelines?
Journalism ethics at center stage, Principal’s Guide to Scholastic Journalism:
Student journalists make ethical decisions daily, whether in advertising, design, information gathering or reporting. Ethical decision-making is essential and ongoing. Keep in mind that ethics are only guidelines. They do not represent standards for punishment or discipline.
Media view very few topics as “taboo.” High school student media should be prepared for worst-case scenarios. Imagine the potential for growth and responsibility when students have journalistic conversations with informed, sincere and open-minded adults before the “taboo” happens.
Differences between law and ethics, Principal’s Guide to Scholastic Journalism:
A working knowledge of ethics can be helpful in reporting sensitive or controversial issues. A staff working its way through a list of questions to make ethical decisions solves problems before they occur. In the process, students generate valuable comments, discussions and considerations.
Student best practice
Develop an editorial policy outlining the legal and ethical responsibilities for student journalists. These resources provide context and/or offer potential models for policy development:
Foundations of Journalism: policies, ethics and staff manuals
SPRC model for ethical guidelines, process
SPLC Model Guidelines for High School Student Media
SPJ Code of Ethics
Online ethical guidelines for student media
More SPRC materials:
Quick Tips: What should go into an editorial policy? What should not?
Editorial policies are the foundations for your journalism program. Often short, these statements address forum status, who makes final decisions of content and prior review.
Student media policy may be the most important decision you make
Students should understand while they can and should adopt best legal practices and ethical guidelines for their publication, the school district’s or school board’s media policy (if one exists) could impact the legal and ethical decisions of student editors.
Press Rights Minute: Ethics in Editing News Photos
Using Photoshop or other software to edit a news photo is unethical because it alters the truth.
Article: Obstacles and criticism can inspire, by Lindsay Coppens
Good, hard-hitting journalism can make people uncomfortable. It illuminates hardship, gives voice to the voiceless, questions the status quo, and encourages people to find solutions to problems. It can be challenging to secure important interviews for stories that pursue challenging topics. Those who agree to an interview may not want to answer all your questions. Editorials that question and challenge policy, procedures, and those in power may be accused of having a political agenda. However, if you adhere to strong journalistic procedure and ethics, these obstacles and criticisms can, in fact, help your journalism become even stronger.
Article: In plain view from public places
Photojournalists and free speech: What can and cannot be photographed continues to fall under question, bringing attention to photojournalists and igniting important First Amendment conversations. As part of other Free Speech Week lessons and activities, teachers may use this opportunity to incorporate key readings and discussion geared toward visual storytellers.
Article: A class activity to learn both law and ethics, by Candace Bowen
Not knowing the difference between law and ethics makes it difficult to teach these two concepts effectively. They are separate fields, though they do overlap in theory and practice, and plenty of journalistic situations require us to assess both legal and ethical components.
Article: Satire: easy to confuse when used out of context, by Tom Gayda
Is satire worth it? Maybe sometimes, but remember: most newspapers don’t include satire, so it is easy for a reader to get confused when what is a typical straightforward paper decides to enter the world of comedy. Perhaps a special publication for satire would be a better way to go.
Article: Lessons in transparency, by George, by Stan Zoller
Student journalists need to not only understand, but practice transparency. It’s not unusual for student journalists to want to take an ‘easy way out’ on a story and maybe use sources or materials that give them path of least resistance. Interviewing friends or colleagues in a club, sport or organization are not unheard of. Policy and procedure manuals should include a statement regarding transparency and any conflict of interest.
Resources: Fake or Fact? Seminar available via archived video
The 13th annual Poynter-Kent State University Media Ethics Workshop focused on fake news. Show your students panel discussions by accessing the archives. A lesson plan for scholastic students, created by Candace Bowen, also is available.
Want to know even more? See these links:
JEA statements on prior review (and definition of), photo manipulation, student free expression and more
Principal’s Guide to Scholastic Journalism
Ethics resources from The Poynter Institute
The Elements of Journalism, American Press Institute
JEA curriculum links:
Just Because You Can, Doesn’t Always Mean You Should
Another Way to Examine Ethics: Red Light, Green Light
When Journalists Must Navigate Ethical Situations
Exploring the Issues with Anonymous Sources
With Freedom of the Press Comes Great Responsibility
Protest Songs and the First Amendment
The Importance of Dissenting Voices
When Journalists Err Ethically
Ethical Guidelines and Procedure Statements: Creating the Foundation
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Ways to celebrate Constitution Day 2018
The Scholastic Press Rights Committee is again excited to provide lesson plans and activities to help you celebrate Constitution Day and the First Amendment. Constitution Day recognized Sept. 17 each year, and we have a trove of new and archived lessons and activities to help you raise awareness of the First Amendment’s rights and applications for students.
Take a look at the new lessons:
Read MoreWhat is copyright?
When students violate copyright, they are stealing from the original copyright holder.
This reference area provides information on what copyright and fair use are, provides guidelines and provides best practices and copyright free resources.
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Alternative story forms for adding context
by Candace Perkins Bowen
Title
Alternative story forms for adding context
Description
Fake news may just be incomplete news if it doesn’t provide the audience with enough context to really tell the story. That can happen with alternative story forms if they just add visuals and fluff but little real information. As The Poynter Institute’s Vicki Krueger describes them, these are “charticles, non-narratives, storytelling devices, ASFs and alts, among others. Some stand alone as a story, and some are supplemental: forms that clarify, complement and explain information in a traditional news story.” In her 10 ways to engage readers with alternative story forms, she offers guidelines for their use. However, a staff’s first decision is when and why to use them. Note that these are to clarify and explain information to avoid misinforming the audience. While alternative story forms can add visual variety, their main purpose is to accurately convey information.
Objectives
- Students will practice improving the information conveyed by providing alternative story forms when useful.
- Students will evaluate alternative story forms as ways to explain complicated messages.
- Students will apply these lessons to generate ideas for potential ASFs for future media topics.
Common Core State Standards
| CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.4 | Produce clear and coherent writing in which the development, organization, and style are appropriate to task, purpose, and audience. |
| CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.5 | Develop and strengthen writing as needed by planning, revising, editing, rewriting, or trying a new approach, focusing on addressing what is most significant for a specific purpose and audience. |
| CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.9-10.8 | Gather relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital sources, using advanced searches effectively; assess the usefulness of each source in answering the research question; integrate information into the text selectively to maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism and following a standard format for citation. |
Length
50 minutes
Materials / resources
White board and markers
Handout: Alternative story form ideas and how to grow them
Access to the internet for seeing other graphics or printouts of them
Assessment: Exit slip to suggest a future ASF
Article: 10 ways to engage readers with alternative story forms
Lesson step-by-step
Step 1 — Provide a bridge (10 minutes)
Students should read the Poynter article, 10 ways to engage readers with alternative story forms. Create a list of ideas and discuss as a class what students see as some they can use to add information to stories in the planning stages. How can these be both graphically pleasing and add some depth to the factual articles? Don’t spend a great deal of time on this as the class will return to it after the next activity.
Step 2 — Handout and activity (20 minutes)
In pairs, students should look at the handout, “Alternative story form ideas and how to grow them.” Have them assess the hypothetical students’ original ideas. Then they should look at the examples on the second page and in links. Discuss what makes these better and how the ideas they offer can be used to improve the original suggestions. Make a list about what improved these new ideas in general.
Step 3 — Large group discussion and feedback (15 minutes)
Discuss what students thought of the original ideas and how they were able to improve them. Then generate a list on the board of what, in general, made the new versions better (e.g. including number surveyed, indicating source of expert information, etc.).
Step 4 — Exit slips
Students should write down one idea they have for a future ASF for a project in the planning stage.
Extension
Students could start the creation of alternative story forms, either the idea used on the exit slip or another for some of their own stories that are in the planning stages. This could be a more complete explanation of the idea on the exit slip or another idea the student has.
Students could also sign up for Poynter Institute’s NewsU course, Beyond the Inverted Pyramid: Creating Alternative Story Forms, by Andy Bechtel. This self-directed online course is free and only requires registering with NewsU. It is designed to take about two hours to complete.
Additional resources
Tim Harrower’s The Newspaper Designer’s Handbook also has a lot about ASFs, including some pages accessible online.
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