Official blog of Clark's Blogging for Journalists class, Mass Communication department

Thursday, March 3, 2016

Ethics in blogging


Read these two articles, and post below, by end of class  today,  answers to

1. Which of these is most important, in your view? And why?

2. Do you disagree with any, and if so, why?

Code of ethics

Blogger ethics

22 comments:

  1. As a journalist first and a blogger second, I think writing ethically is at the top of my list of importance but even before that is minimizing harm in what I write. I know there have been several times that I have read a biased article that didn't necessarily offend me but I could see where it would be offensive if I was on the other side of the story. There was nothing I disagreed with, like I said, being ethical is at the top of my list as a writer.

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  2. 1. I think the most important thing is to fact-check everything, but I also think a really important principle is to distinguish between factual information, commentary and advocacy. I think it's a huge problem today that people read something on a parody blog and pass it along as factual instead of facetious humor.

    2. I don't see anything here that I disagree with.

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  3. 1. The most important to me is to minimize harm. I think people often don't realize that they need to really think about the words they write on their blogs.
    2. I don't disagree with any of these blogger ethics. I think they're great guidelines for new bloggers.

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  4. 1. When blogging, I feel that you should somewhat think of yourself as a journalist. If you are going to post something to your page, make sure that it is credible. Clearly, if the blog is about your personal life, the only source is you. But if you have a blog on news, sports, entertainment, etc., make sure to always check the info and make sure it is reliable. Once you put something on the internet, it stays there so always double check.

    2. I both agree and disagree with somethings in this article. While I believe ethics are important, I do think because it is a personal account, you should be able to put your own spin on it. Although vulgarity is not welcomed in news outlets among other things, in a personal blog, its anything goes. Some writers/personalities have even made a living on being a direct realist, speaking their mind with no filter.

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  5. 1. Fact checking everything is very important especially if you are talking about real people or food because those can seriously affect someone.

    2. All of these blogger ethics works for me.

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  6. 1. Fact checking everything is very important especially if you are talking about real people or food because those can seriously affect someone.

    2. All of these blogger ethics works for me.

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  7. 1. I think people should act ethically when using a public platform. I believe minimizing harm and fact-checking are tied. Lately there have been many people falsely accused of things they didn't say or do, and were unjustly vilified by the media because of it.

    2. I didn't disagree with any of these points. I think they should be common sense. While blogs can be personal, it's important to remember that they are not diaries. They will be read by people and they can do real damage to peoples' reputations.

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  8. I found that all of the ethical points listed by the article were important. The parts I feel most strongly about is honesty and accuracy. It's incredibly important to make sure you're being fair and honest in your writing to prevent both misinformation for the reader and maintain credibility as a writer. In terms of blogging, denying special treatment to advertisers is relevant and openly listing dealings with advertisers keeps readers from feeling deceived. There's nothing I particularly disagreed with.

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  9. 1. The most important thing to me is checking facts and to not cause harm to anyone. Even though it is a personal blog you still have to be aware of how some people might take it.
    2. I don't disagree with any of the blogger ethics.

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  10. 1. Writing ethically is important when writing. I do think there needs to be a distinction between factual information and a blog that is just commentary. Many people take things out of context and it does more harm.
    2. I think the guidelines are great!

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  11. 1. Which of these is most important, in your view? And why?

    I will always choose being honest and fair. I believe if you follow this code of ethics in every part of your life you will be prosperous. These blogging ethics are very similar to journalism ethics in that you have the opportunity to share the truth to make a positive impact. You should always be mindful of the power of your work.

    2. Do you disagree with any, and if so, why?
    The only code I disagree with is with personal agendas. I believe a blog can be used personally as long as it is truthful and causes no unnecessary harm. A blog is different from journalism in that you have the ability to be biased if you choose.

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  12. 1) I feel like the most important thing is to be a credible or trustworthy site. The easiest way to do this to make sure that everything you post is fact-checked and correct. Journalism, at any level, does not work when the audience doesn't trust information.

    2) There wasn't anything, in particular, that I disagreed with. At the end of the day I think being ethical is the best option.

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  13. 1. Which of these is most important, in your view? and why?
    I think being honest and fair is most important. I think its important because its the one thing people can't say you didn't do. It is just the right thing to do in all areas of your life.
    2. Do you disagree with any, and if so, why?
    Be accountable. If its on my blog of course Im going to be accountable for whatever I said on it. I think that one was pointless.

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  14. The most important one for me is being honest and fair. When you think about it, you're only setting yourself up for failure if you give out false information and that is what people will know you as.

    I think that all the guidelines are legit.

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  15. 1.) I think all of these are extremely important to follow in not only traditional journalism, but also in blogging. If I had to pick one that was most important I would say that it is to be honest and fair. It kind of reminds me of that saying "a man is nothing without his word."The people who are reading your blog are trusting you with the information you deliver that you are being a truthful. Responsible journalism is supposed to be informative and factual. Everyone can makes mistakes, even if the information you receive and write about turns out to be untrue, you should be held accountable for correcting/clarifying it because its the responsible thing to do.
    2.) I really disagree with any of these! I think these are all good ethics to abide by and serve a real purpose.

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  16. 1.) I think all of these are extremely important to follow in not only traditional journalism, but also in blogging. If I had to pick one that was most important I would say that it is to be honest and fair. It kind of reminds me of that saying "a man is nothing without his word."The people who are reading your blog are trusting you with the information you deliver that you are being a truthful. Responsible journalism is supposed to be informative and factual. Everyone can makes mistakes, even if the information you receive and write about turns out to be untrue, you should be held accountable for correcting/clarifying it because its the responsible thing to do.
    2.) I really disagree with any of these! I think these are all good ethics to abide by and serve a real purpose.

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  17. 1. I think the most important is to be honest and fair. I think if you are always being honest, people might not agree with you or like what you say, but honesty is truly the best policy. They should atleast respect you for being honest. Along with being honest, I think making sure your facts are correct are equally as important.

    2. I don't disagree with any of the ethics. I think it is very important to be ethical and stick to all these guidelines, always keeping readers in mind.

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  18. 1. Be Accountable. It is every bloggers duty to take responsibility for what they right and the information that they find/ use. If a blogger is not accountable then the information they are putting out may not be the truth or they may not be trustworthy.

    2. There is nothing in the code of ethics that I would disagree with. The code of ethics is there for a reason. Bloggers should be held to the same standards as professional reporters.

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  19. The most important aspects of the blogger code of ethics in my opinion are the ones that deal directly with the basics of any form of journalism. Things like never plagiarize, don't publish knowingly false information, and openly admit when mistakes are made. These are the types of principles that any type of journalist no matter what should work to uphold. About the only thing I disagree with is the call to expose other bloggers, but I come from the belief that it's better to worry about your own blog. Water your own yard so to speak.

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  20. 1) I think being willing to admit your mistakes and fix them when they happen is a valuable life skill in general. It is very important to acknowledge mistakes and not ignore them.

    2) How could I disagree with something in the code of ethics? Wouldn't that make me a bad person? I think as people who put content into the world, bloggers should be held to a relatively similar code of standards as journalists.

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  21. 1. Which of these is most important, in your view? And why?

    I believe being honest and fair is the most important thing because people deserve to know the truth, however people also deserve to be treated fairly and with respect.

    2. Do you disagree with any, and if so, why?

    I do not disagree with any of the Blogger's Ethics. They are all important guidelines for bloggers to follow, as well as good guidelines for writing in general.

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  22. 1. I think the most important point in the blogging code of ethics is to minimize harm. You can seriously get in some trouble with speaking ill about anyone. In order to keep your writing on the right path keep your writing honest, fair and free of malice.

    2. I disagree with nothing in these ethical codes. Keep it legal. Keep it fresh. Keep it honest. Keep it hate-free.

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