On Monday, the site Accountable Journalism launched, with more than 400 searchable codes of ethics from media outlets around the world. According to the site, “it is important to recognize the value of media codes not just for traditional reporters, but for anyone using the mass social media tools and who are regularly committing acts of journalism.”
This searchable database, which shows how the media industry has grappled with the idea of ethics and accountability for nearly a century, aims to help journalists, educators, and anyone in the business of communications make ethical decisions which are widely accepted by international media professionals.
Screen shot, Accountable Journalism
You can do a quick search or search by topic, organizations and countries. There are so far 71 entries, for instance, for “Obscenities, Vulgarities, and Slurs” and 134 for “Corrections.”
The project comes from The Ethical Journalism Network and the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute, which worked together to relaunch and retool the site, according to RJI.
“This database is one of the most popular features for RJI so we’re delighted to be able to team up with EJN to expand it and make it easier to use,” said Randy Picht, RJI’s executive director. “The new search flexibility alone will give media professionals, educators and students terrific new insights into the important subject of media ethics around the world.”
The site notes that the database was built with crowdsourcing and “is very much still a work in process and far from comprehensive!”
