Policies and manualsGiving direction to

Building a stronger Foundation for all student

media provides direction to achieve the best

legal and ethical guidelines, provides

consistency andlets others know what you stand for.

What is the Foundation?• Mission statement

• Policy (media-level and/or board-level)

• Ethical guidelines

• Staff manual procedures

• Our thinking is to create focused, meshed and

understandable model policies.

• Our Foundations model works as one document, but

with four clearly separated sections, covering all student

media in the school.

Definitions• Mission statement: Establishes the principles, aim,

values and philosophy of the student media.

• Policy: Establishes the overarching principles and

concepts that guide students’ present and future

decisions and practice. Establishes the medias’ forum

status and role of prior review. (3 types of forum status)

• A policy is akin to a constitution, not changed often and

establishes the democratic concepts for which media

stand.

Definitions• Ethical guidelines: Establish what standards the media

should make to best implement and explain decisions,

mission and role; outlines standards of conduct.o Why to use unnamed sources

• Staff manual: Establishes the operating processes and

procedures consistent with the principles, policy and

ethical judgments of the media.o Steps to follow to use unnamed sources

o Camera check out

o How to answer the phone

Mission statement• What do you think should be in an effective mission

statement?

Mission statement• _____________ (school name) student media

publish complete and accurate coverage across

platforms through journalistically responsible, ethically

reported and edited content. Student-determined

expression promotes democratic citizenship through

public engagement diverse in both ideas and

representation.

• Or containing in your own words…

Mission statement• Audience engagement

• Journalistic responsibility

• Additional reporting basics

• Ethical reporting and editing

• Student-determined content

• Diversity of ideas and representation

• Platform consistency

• Connection to school mission statement

Policy statement• What should be in editorial policy statements?

Policy model(board- or media-level)

• Designated public forum for student expression without prior review by school officials in which students make all final decisions of content.

• Additional terms: freedom of Expression. First Amendment, Constitution, roles, mission, ownership of student content, advertising decisions, handling letters, consistent policy handling across platforms

• Please remember, a pro-First-Amendment board-level policy is always preferred.

• Be cautious. If you don’t have such a policy, test the waters carefully. Build the case for this.

Ethics guidelines

• Remember, these establish what standards the media

should make to best implement and explain decisions,

mission and role; outline standards of conduct.

• Ethics. Principles that guide student decision- making.

• Think of ethics as a right v right dilemma.

• With unnamed sources neither using them or not not

using them is wrong.

Ethical guidelines• A thorough set of student-designed ethical statements can

help guide all media activities.

• But … not as a part of the policy where someone might try to use it as criteria for punishment.

• Ethical guides should be Green Light statements and not measures for discipline.

• Green lights encourage; Red lights discourage.

• Where do ethics statements go: In a ethical guidelines manual, a part of a strong Staff Manual.

Red light, green light ethics• Red Light says back off; Green Light ethics call for

“pinning it down”

• Red Light ethics o emphasize restraint and caution

o Keep things out of print and off the air

o See journalists as too aggressive

o Prescribes what journalists “ought not” do

• Green light ethicso Emphasizes empowerment and duty over caution and restraint

o Consider “how to” rather than “ought not”

o Focus on opportunities rather than limits

o Views journalists as too timid rather than too aggressive

---Roy Peter Clark

Ethical issue: example• If question on the veracity of publication persists, the issue

will be brought to the editorial board who must consider the following questions before publication of the piece:

o Why is it a concern?

o What is its journalistic purpose?

o Is the information accurate and complete?

o Are any important POV omitted?

o How would we feel if the story was about ourselves or someone we know?

o What are the consequences of the publication?

o Is there a logical explanation to anyone who challenges issue?

o Is it worth risking our credibility?

o What are the alternatives?

Ethical situation, statement

• Do you have one we could talk through

Staff manual procedures• This is the how-to-do-it section.

• A list of steps to grant anonymous status to a source

who wants to be unnamed, for example.

Ethics/manual model statements

• 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.

Staff manual procedure• 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.

Staff manual procedure• 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

Summary & solutions• Separate documents: policy, ethical guidelines and staff

manual procedure

• They can be in one document within clearly differentiated

sections with separate purposes and functions

• The ethics section would be more aligned with Green

Light thinking than Red Light, simplifying the process

and lessening confusion

LinksFoundations model:

http://jeasprc.org/buildingfoundations/

SPRC site:

http://jeasprc.org

• This presentation:

http://jeasprc.org/building-journalistic-foundations-advisers-institute-session-materials/

• CC credit to Dayna Mason, bar magnet on a compass array, Sep. 20, 2007, front slide.

• https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/

• No changes made other than cropping

JEA Adviser Code of Ethics

• Model standards of professional journalistic

• Empower students to make decisions of style, structure. and

content by creating a learning atmosphere where students will

actively practice critical thinking and decision making.

• Encourage students to seek out points of view and to explore a

variety of information sources in their decision making.

• Support and defend a free, robust and active forum for student

expression without prior review or restraint.

• Emphasize the importance of accuracy, balance and clarity in

all aspects of news gathering and reporting.

Adviser Code of Ethics• Show trust in students as they carry out their responsibilities by encouraging and supporting them in a caring, learning environment.

• Remain informed on press rights and responsibilities across media platforms.

• Advise, not act as censor or decisions maker.

• Display professional and personal integrity in situations which might be construed as potential conflicts of interest.

• Support free expression for others in local and larger communities.

• Model traits of a life-long learner through continuous professional development in media education along with membership and involvement in professional media organizations.

Adviser Code of Ethics• Champion inclusion so that ALL students not only see

themselves and their ideas represented, but also see themselves as able to contribute to and to lead student-determined media.

• Foster cooperation and open communication with administrators and other stakeholders while students exercise their First Amendment rights.

• Encourage journalistically responsible use of social media in schools and educate students, school officials and community to its value. Educate students about the ramifications of its misuse.

•

Panic Button

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

Prior review alternative• Student media is called and practices as a designated public forum

for student expression where student editors and staff make all final decisions of content.

• Before the pages/broadcast/web materials go to print, administrators have the length of a school day (the day they are given materials) to review content and to ask questions.

• All content must be in students’ hands at the end of the day, on schedule, for publication.

• If administrators/school officials have questions, they may request meeting time within that day and not to delay publication.

• School officials may comment, ask questions or request changes.

• All final decisions remain with the students as they meet their deadlines. They can choose to heed school officials requests or suggestions, or go with content as it was.

Ethics template• Foundations: Ethical statement-staff manual

• The XXXXXXXX Times

• General statement of mission and roles as locally determined

•

• Editorial policy – board level

• XXXXXX High School student media are designated public forums in which students make all decisions of content without prior review by school officials.

•

• Ethical statement(s) Title

• The topic’s general statements go here. One-three short paragraphs generally outlining the ethical issue

•

• Procedures

• This would indicate the procedure by which the general topic would be carried out.

•

• Suggestions

• This would indicate recommendations student staffs could choose from.

•

• Resources

• In some instances we would include recommended resources for additional ideas, lessons to stress the approach, etc.