Verification
Ethical guidelines
Journalists should approach their reporting and interviewing with a healthy dose of skepticism. This doesn’t mean they should trust no one, but it means they should be aware of potential conflicts of interest or barriers to receiving accurate information. Reporters should always verify, even if the information seems incredibly obvious and simplistic. Verifying information is much like fact-checking. Students should seek multiple forms of evidence to confirm information.
Staff manual process
Student journalists should be trained to ask one very specific question during every interview: “How do you know?” This particular question can help reporters analyze whether a source really is in a position to know the information in question. Reporter checklists or training materials should address this step.
Many ways exist to verify and corroborate information. Corroboration requires journalists to ask multiple sources the same question to determine whether the answer is the same across all sources. If the answer varies, journalists should seek additional information and evidence. The staff manual should outline this process.
Students may want to read quotes back to a source for verification, especially when a story deals with specialized knowledge or sensitive material. However, some sources may want to read the entire story, but this gives up editorial control and can put the writer in a difficult position. The staff manual should cover what is expected of reporters in this situation.
Suggestions
• Editors should establish multiple deadlines for stories in order to track progress. This helps cut down on the last-minute rush before publication when reporters run out of time to verify.
• Training and staff resources should make sure all reporters know what to say if a source – particularly a school administrator and someone who might be intimidating – asks to read a complete story prior to publication.
• While it may be unrealistic to require a set number of sources for each story, the staff manual should explain the need for multiple sources in order to get all the facts.
• The staff manual should emphasize the importance of asking for exact spelling of names, places and organizations to make sure these details are accurate, even if the name seems fairly common.
• The student media staff should implement a system to keep track of sources who have provided misinformation and either stop using those sources or take extra measures to verify the information they provide.
• Students should always consider what documents or evidence can be used to corroborate source information.
Resources
Journalism As a Discipline of Verification, American Press Institute
How Do Journalists Verify?, The Poynter Institute
Lesson: Fact Checking in the Digital Age, Journalism Education Association
Lesson: How the Pros Fact Check, Journalism Education Association
Verify Information, JEA Scholastic Press Rights Committee, Press Rights Minute
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Read MoreUnnamed sources
Ethical guidelines
Journalism is based on truth and accuracy. Using unnamed sources risks both of those standards. For that reason, students should seek sources willing to speak on the record. Unnamed sources should be used sparingly and only after students evaluate how the need for the information balances with the problems such sources create.
Occasionally, a source’s physical or mental health may be jeopardized by information on the record. In this instance, journalists should take every precaution to minimize harm to the source.
Staff manual process
Editors should train staff members on how to conduct proper interviews on the record. Poor interview techniques could lead to confusion between potential sources and reporters. Staff members should always identify themselves when working on behalf of student media. Reporters should be advised to use anonymous sources rarely.
Before agreeing to do so, they should ask the following questions:
• Why does the source want to remain unnamed? Is it possible he/she would be in danger if his/her name is revealed? What other problems could occur?
• How important is the story? How important is the information provided, and is there an alternative means for gathering it? Using an unnamed source hurts credibility and could risk legal action.
• Students should consider what might happen if a court demands to know the source’s name. Most professional journalists would not reveal the name, and many have gone to jail instead of doing so. Would student reporters be willing to go that far? What legal protections exist in your state for protection of sources?
• What might the source have to gain from getting this information published? Some sources who want to be off the record have ulterior motives that could harm someone else.
• If students decide the information is vital and the source has a solid reason for remaining unnamed, who, besides the reporter, should know the identity? Many staffs decide the editor should know to assess the credibility of the source, but not the adviser in order to protect the adviser’s professional position at the school.
Resources
Legal Protections For Journalists’ Sources And Information, Student Press Law Center
Position Paper on Anonymity of Sources, Society of Professional Journalists
Use of Unnamed Sources, National Public Radio
Lesson: Exploring the Issues with Anonymous Sources, Journalism Education Association
Unnamed Sources, JEA Scholastic Press Rights Committee, Press Rights Minute
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Read MoreTreatment of minors
Ethical guidelines
All sources deserve to be treated with respect and dignity, but there are special legal and ethical situations that apply to minors. In general, minors are anyone under the state’s legal age of adulthood, usually 18. This poses some special concerns because often a student who is a senior may no longer be a minor but is still in a setting (school) considered protective of minors.
Student media should be aware of their state laws regarding publishing information about minors without parental consent, including photos and names. Student journalists should always remember their mandate to “minimize harm” when dealing with the subjects of stories while recognizing their obligation to report the truth.
Staff manual process
All relevant state laws and district policies should be kept on hand in the student newsroom. If a minor is involved in a crime, the police report is the guide. In most cases, if a police report provides the name of a victim or perpetrator, those names may be legally used in the press.
However, that doesn’t mean that this choice is ethically sound. Publishing the names of victims of a crime may be traumatizing and cause unwanted ostracizing or attention. While some administrators say student media – especially online versions – cannot use full names, this may not be a legal issue. Check to be sure.
Suggestions
• Be sure to ask sources for their age during each interview.
• covering sensitive topics that involve minors, it is sometimes advisable to connect with that student’s parents to inform them of the news coverage. (This is not only ethical but might provide additional information.)
• When in doubt about whether a minor respects the potential gravity associated with being named in or interviewed for a certain story, asking the student to sign a permission slip can help to highlight the seriousness of the issue.
• When in doubt about whether a minor understands the potential risks associated with being named in or interviewed for a certain story, asking the student’s parent to sign a permission slip gives the publication permission to use his or her child’s name.
• Seek legal advice from the Student Press Law Center or other legal experts when questions arise about invasions of privacy.
• Is potential harm to a minor because of a story worth the risk? Some stories will be so important they justify the risk. Others are not likely to be worth it.
Resources
Naming Names: Identifying Minors, Student Press Law Center
Interviewing Children, Guidelines for Journalists, Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma
Best Practices for Covering Children And Teens Younger Than 18, Associated Press
From the Hotline, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press
Guidelines for Interviewing Juveniles, Radio Television Digital News Association
Guidelines for Interviewing Juveniles, The Poynter Institute
How the Tampa Bay Times Reported on a Transgender Kid’s Prom Bid, The Poynter Institute
Lesson: Reading, Writing and Discussing the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), Journalism Education Association
Lesson: SPLC Media Law Presentation: Freedom of Information, Journalism Education Association
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Read MorePublic records and public meetings
Ethical guidelines
Journalists have a right and responsibility to access public records and attending public meetings as part of the information-gathering process. Open records laws typically presume that records created or maintained or meetings held by a government agency are open to the public unless they fall within a few specific exemptions written into the law. That means the government typically has the burden of explaining why it does not have to provide access to a record or meeting.
Staff manual process
Students, like all citizens, have the right to request public records. Public records of special interest to student media include teacher and administrator salaries, crime reports and minutes of official meetings. The staff manual should provide information about what type of records students might choose to request and how to do so
To request public records, student media staff should:
• Determine what records contain the information they are looking for. Most open records laws do not require government agencies to create records to comply with a request. Their obligation is only to provide access to records that already exist.
• Determine who is the holder of those records.
• Make a verbal request, preferably in person. Students should be polite and not presume they will not get what they are requesting.
• Know at least the citation to the relevant open records law (typically the open records law in their state if they are requesting records from a public school). A list of these laws can be found from the National Freedom of Information Coalition.
• If denied, ask for the specific statutory exemption that justifies the denial.
• Be persistent, but professional.
• Make a written request, if the steps above do not result in obtaining the records. Sample letters are available from the Student Press Law Center or the National Freedom of Information Coalition.
Suggestions
• Public records can take a while to access after they have been requested, so staff manuals should provide information for seeking the most commonly requested information.
• Requesting public records at the start of the school year can make it easier to write on those issues without waiting for access.
• Sometimes, public offices charge a fee for releasing public records (usually related to copying and administrative costs). By law, this fee should not be overly burdensome. Students should be cautious if a public institution is charging exorbitant rates. Under most open records laws the right to inspect public records is free.
• Likewise, requested public records must be released within a certain time frame (which varies by state law), or the institution must explain in writing why the records cannot be released. Students should keep all documentation related to these requests and responses.
• Student editors should conduct staff training on how to generate a public records request.
Resources
Freedom-of-Information Records Request Letter Generator, Student Press Law Center
Sample State Request Letters, National Freedom of Information Coalition
Access to Records Meetings, Places, Student Press Law Center
Lesson: Freedom of Information, Journalism Education Association
Lesson: Using Public Documents, Journalism Education Association
Audio: Using the Freedom of Information Act, JEA Scholastic Press Rights Committee, Press Rights Minute
Audio: Open Meetings Act, JEA Scholastic Press Rights Committee, Press Rights Minute
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Media-level editorial policies
Ethics guidelines
Media-level e
ditorial policies aren’t as much legal protection as the board-level policies, but they could show how students operate “in practice” and thus might be viewed as some protection. Thus they are a must for student media. JEA’s Model Editorial Policy is a good example because it adds discussion points such as letters to the editor, handling coverage of death and advertising.
Any of the board-level policy models can be adapted for use at the media level. All policies, including the JEA model, stress student media as designated public forums in which students make all content decisions without prior review by school officials.
The JEA model includes detailed language and provides direction for process and principles. It expands on the Student Press Law Center’s Model Guidelines for High School Media, with the kind of situations student media face, which makes it preferable at the level of the individual medium.
Ethical guidelines and staff manual procedures should be separate sections from either board-level or student media-level policies. This way student editors can update their staff manuals to meet changing needs and situations.
Staff manual process
A school without policies can cause confusion and misunderstanding for readers and participants. Media-level editorial policies should be direct, clear and understandable to people of all ages. These policies reinforce ethical guidelines, and a staff manual rooted in ethical approaches outlines their implementation on a daily basis.
Media-level editorial policies should be reviewed and endorsed yearly to keep them current as the active framework for student media. Any student media policy established without the input of its student practitioners is both a missed opportunity and a recipe for mistakes. By evaluating the inclusion of these policies, students will better understand their mission and expectations.
When finished, media-level policies should be shared with school and outside communities so all parties understand the principles and processes the journalism program follows.
Suggestions
Even if staffs incorporate the JEA model editorial policy as a framework, students should work to establish clear guidelines for their decision-making.
In creating the ideal forum statement, consistent for all student media at either media or board level, staffs should include: “[NAME OF STUDENT MEDIA] are designated public forums for student expression in which students make all final content decisions without prior review from school officials.”
Such a media-level policy, board-approved or in practice, would be designed to protect all parties in case of legal issues
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