Lecture Eight

I wasn't overly impressed with this week's lecture on ethics in all honesty. For the first 25 minutes of the lecture we were given a score sheet to mark how ethical/unethical a selection of adverts where. While I understood that this was to demonstrate that people perceive ethics differently, I think the same outcome might have been achieved in a more relevant way such as scoring various news stories that pushed the boundaries of being unethical. 

After this exercise we got an overview of theories of ethics (Deontology, Consequentialism & Virtue). In the practice of professional journalism, the media operate under a series of codes that outline appropriate conduct (Deontology). The main ones in Australia are MEAA, PRIA, AFA and AANA. These codes widely cover:

• Honesty 
• Fairness
• Independence
• Respect for the rights of others

While I understand that class needed a grounding in vague ethical principles and ideas, I was far more interested to hear about how the media breaches it's own codes and the consequences. Unfortunately this interest was not sated in the lecture which promptly ended after a brief rundown of the purposes of these codes. 

So I decided to go looking for some examples myself. The fact of the matter is, journalists and media outlets break the rules all the time. And not in the way that movie stars in Hollywood  'uncover the truth' (I can't think of that terrible film Russel Crowe and Rachel McAdams are in) often in the real world, it is because they want to 'create the truth.' So here are some of the truly appalling things Australian media has done (a mere tip of the iceberg). 

A Current Affairs - "Foreign Doctors"

http://www.acma.gov.au/WEB/STANDARD/pc=PC_311677

In 2007 ACA did a report on doctors trained outside of Australia saying that they are 'dodgy' and not sufficiently skilled. The program was found to be in breach of ACMA's code of conduct and they were reprimanded heavily. 

'ACMA found that the licensee failed to present material relating to the complainant accurately by omitting material regarding the complainant’s Australian qualifications. This was a finding of a significant error of fact which the licensee also failed to make reasonable efforts to correct at the earliest opportunity.'

Kyle Sandilands - 2Day FM

http://mumbrella.com.au/sandilands-breached-radio-code-rules-watchdog-81425

After a spout of controversial comments on live radio, ACMA reprimanded 2Day FM's Kyle Sandilands for sexist comments he made in regards to News Ltd journalist, Alison Stephenson after she gave a negative review of his television show.

“Some fat slag on news.com.au has already branded it a disaster. You can tell by reading the article that she just hates us and has always hated us. What a fat bitter thing you are. You’re deputy editor of an online thing. You’ve got a nothing job anyway. You’re a piece of shit.

“This low thing, Alison Stephenson, deputy editor of news.com.au online. You’re supposed to be impartial, you little troll. You’re a bullshit artist, girl. You should be fired from your job. Your hair’s very 90s. And your blouse. You haven’t got that much titty to be having that low cut a blouse. Watch your mouth or I’ll hunt you down.”

'ACMA said that Sandilands had shown a “flagrant disregard” for the guidelines on the portrayal of women on commercial radio.

2Day FM had argued that the station was not in breach of the rules on decency because they included standards based on the expectations of the listeners. It argued that Kyle Sandilands listeners would not be offended by the comments.'