JOURNALISM ETHICS IN NIGERIA
This article is a critical
review of journalism ethics in Nigeria
INTRODUCTION
The media are a social institution
that must make a moral contribution to the society. This assertion forms the basis for the call
for an ethically based practice of journalism. According to Johnson [1997:102]
the media are a potentially “great secular church” and “a system of evangelism
for dispensing the darkness of ignorance, expelling error and establishing
truth”. One major way by which truth in
its entire ramification can be passed along in any modern society is
essentially through the media, and people would be virtuous and take the right
courses of actions so long as they are fully informed of the truth.
Someone once said that “after ten
years of observing government and other social institutions at work, if the
world is to be saved from selfish self-destruction it would be the journalist,
in all their objectionable practices, who would do it”. [ Black, Steele and
Barney, 1999:1]
This and other such utterances
portray the media as societal agents of dissemination of information by which
people shape and mold their realities of life. Such is believed to be the
influence of the media that they have been referred to as ‘agents of power’ and
every society ascribes certain duties, rights and responsibilities to the
media. In addition, the media are also expected to operate within the context
of a high sense of responsibility and morality.[ Altschull, 1995]
Johnson [1997:103] in making a case
for an ethical journalism enumerated the roles of the media in a democracy. He
quoted Noah Webster as arguing that the press was essential to the success of
republican government because it was the only sure way to correct government’s
abuses. The press was expected to be placed upon a “respectable footing” by
society because it is a herald of truth, and a protector of peace and good
order”. However, a dilemma seems to exist concerning the role of the press and
the responsibilities of its activities. The society needs the press to oil its
democracy but fears the damage and corruption its frailties inflict on the people
and the polity.
Hence, in spite of the various
legal restraints, there is still a need for a moral media, serving moral
purposes and being worked by moral people. This is where ethics becomes
imperative, more so, as the press above all other social institutions is
believed to have a lot of influence and power often said to be enormous and
fearsome. Such influence and power can
not be curtailed by legal restraints only but also by awareness by journalists
of the duties the exercise of such power imposes.
Johnson [1997:103-104] maintains that people
who work in the media are often insufficiently aware of the obligations of
their powerful position, much less so than say politicians. He opines that
journalists even see themselves as part of the entertainment industry,
“operating in the frivolous margins of life”. This, he says, is false.
The media are omnivorous,
ubiquitous, uncircumscribed and comprehensive. There is no nook or cranny of
the world, scarcely
a hidden area of the human
spirit which they do not seek to
penetrate. And most of us want
it that way because our own
curiosity is infinite.
This enormous coverage and
influence on society thus bestows on the press the imperative to be moral or
ethical in order to be perceived as professional. The point being made here is
that the press has a moral duty and awesome responsibilities that go with such
power and influence it possesses.
With such perceived power and
influence, the media have fallen under more and more public scrutiny and
sometimes public condemnation for what is generally considered unethical
practices. For example, there is hardly any Nigerian who is not familiar with
the term ‘brown envelope’ or junk journalism, two euphemisms for unethical
conduct.
Johnson [1997:103-104] has identified the
characteristic weaknesses which lie behind public condemnation of journalism in
what he termed, ‘the seven deadly sins of the media’. These are: distortion,
worshiping false images, theft of privacy, murder of character, exploitation of
sex, poisoning the minds of children, and abuse of power.
In order to fight these
characteristic weaknesses of unethical practices and ameliorate public
condemnation the media must deliberately develop the capabilities for positive
moral and ethical objectives as well as prohibit any conduct that supports the
seven deadly sins. This is the whole duty of ethics.
ETHICS DEFINED AND EXPLAINED
Simply put, ethics is the study of
morality. If we ask anybody what ethics mean, we are likely to hear that it is
something to do with moral judgments or right actions.
Day [1991:2-3] defines ethics as the branch of
philosophy that deals with the moral component of human life. It is the study
of rights and who is or should be benefited or harmed by an action. Stoner and
other coauthors [2002:107-109] defined ethics as the study of people’s rights
and duties, the moral rules that people apply in making decisions, and the
nature of the relationships among people.
Another definition says that ethics are rules of conduct or principles of
morality that point us toward the right or best way to act in a situation.
[Dominick, 1996:434]
Odunewu [2000:122] defines ethics as the study
of standards of conduct and moral judgment…… the system or code of morals of a
particular profession, of a group, of religion, etc.
Ethics is based on the Greek word
‘ethos’, meaning character, or what a good person is or does in order to have a
good character. It deals with choosing among the good or bad options that an
individual faces. It may be seen as being concerned with that which holds
society or a profession together or provides stability and security essential
to social or professional cohesion. It involves thinking about morality, moral
problems and moral judgments. It deals with what obligations we owe or to
responsibilities we have toward our fellow humans, and what we should do to
make the world a better place than we find it.[ Black, Steele, and Barney,
1999:5]
The key ideas or concepts that make
for a good understanding of the term ethics are: values, rights, duties, rules
or standards, relationships, and morality.
Values, or more precisely ethical
values, are relatively permanent desires that seem to be esteemed or regarded
highly or good in and of themselves, like objectivity or fairness.
There are four influential sources
of values: parents, peer groups, role models, and societal institutions. All of
these contribute to the moral development of the individual through the process
of socialization.
Rights are claims that entitle an
individual the latitude to take certain actions subject to his relationship
with others. They are ‘spheres of autonomy’ or freedoms, upon which the
individual can act, though limited by such rights of other people, like freedom
of expression.
Duties are obligations to take
specific actions. They are correlated with rights and they are that which the
individual is bound to perform in the course of his professional or daily
living, like gathering, reporting and interpreting information.
Rules and standards are guidelines
upon which an individual acts and which provide resolutions in the face of
ethical dilemmas, like seeking and reporting the truth. Rules often become
internalized as values.
Relationships are connections of
one individual to another in a web of mutuality. Every one is connected to
others in such a way that actions of an individual can lead to a multiplier
effect affecting one or more people.
Morality is the way or manner in
which an individual behaves in line with socially approved customs or
practices. There is a common morality or body of moral rules and standards
governing the practice of journalism, such as would be found in the codes of
professional practice. [Stoner et al, 2002:110-112; Day, 1991:9-14]
The nature of ethics is such that
all these concepts – values, rights, duties, rules, relationships and morality
- are interconnected in a complex entity upon which many philosophers had
deliberated over time.
Ethical theories or principles can
be seen as ethical roads or maps of morality that point the individual toward
the right or best way to act in a particular situation.
Okunna [1995:9] defines an ethical theory as a
principle put forward to explain, describe, prescribe or predict human ethical
behaviour. Over the years, philosophers
have developed several general ethical principles that serve as guidelines for
taking ethical decisions or for evaluating one’s behaviour.
According to Merrill [1997:52],
there are many such theories or principles and all presumably lead to the same
destination – ethical journalism. And journalists can be ethical when they take
decisions or act based on any of the ethical theories.
In making a case for the need for
journalistic ethics, Merrill [1997:1-26] identifies two types of journalists:
the libertarian journalist and the communitarian, and explains the duality of
perspectives based on the desires of each one to practice responsible
journalism.
The perspectives of libertarians
and communitarians, both, give some indications as to how journalists behaving
on the basis of individual differences would likely adopt certain specific
ethical principles. For instance, the
libertarian journalist is likely to be inner-directed opting for principles
that emphasize personal ethics whereas the communitarian is likely to be
other-directed, opting for civic transformation and professional codes.
However, this duality in itself may not prove very helpful concerning actual
normative ethical standards that might be used by the journalist.
To this end, Merrill [1997:55-74]
propounds a binary way of looking at broad ethical theories – pragmatic ethics
and humanistic ethics.
There have been diverse ways of
categorizing theories of ethics and there is a measure of controversy about how
many dominant theoretical approaches there are, but Merrill’s typology has been
based on the premise that all these theories can be placed under two main
categories – pragmatic and humanistic.
PRAGMATIC ETHICS
This category of journalistic
ethics considers the focus of all journalistic endeavours as the investigation
and reporting of the truth so that people are given forthright and
full-disclosure of the day’s event as much as possible. The premise is that the job of the journalist
is to provide as truthful an account as possible and that the end may justify
the means; thus, it may be that unconventional ethical means could be used.
Merrill [1997:58-60] considers this
a Machiavellian but pragmatic morality in which the end justifies the means.
This is also a teleological perspective in which consideration of consequences
and professionalism is deemed paramount.
For instance, a reporter who
deceives a difficult source to unearth a story may be considered to have done
the right thing or at least, the professionally expedient thing.
Merrill [1997:62-63] explains that
this category of ethics is focused on either self improvement of the journalist
or on a concern for others, especially, sources and audiences. It can be divided into three main
sub-categories: deontological, or “duty to principle” ethics; teleological, or
“consequence ethics”; and personalist, or “non-rational, subjective ethics”.
Deontological Ethics
Deontologists (derived from the
Greek Deon or duty) are sometimes referred to as ‘non-consequentialists’
because they emphasize acting on principle or according to certain universal
morality without much regard to the consequences of their actions.
They follow maxims that have been
acquired from religion, reason, universal norms, moral mentors or employers.
Their main focus is that the ends do not justify the means rather there are
absolute principles that must be adhered to. There is an emphasis on the intent
or motive rather than the ends. The most famous deontologist is the philosopher
Immanuel Kant (1724-1804).
A deontologist journalist would not
subscribe to using deception in ferreting out a story because to him, the end
does not justify the means. In the same vein, he will be obliged to tell it as
it is even if some people are hurt because he is committed to telling the
truth.
Teleological Ethics
The teleological theory postulates
that it is the consequence of an action that ought to determine the morality.
Thus, it is called consequence-based theories in that the ethically correct
decision or action is the one that produces the best consequence.
Teleologists, unlike deontologists,
do not ask whether a particular practice is right or wrong based on certain
specific principles they hold to, but whether it will lead to good results.
Thus the journalist who is a teleologist would want to take the action that
would result in good consequences to the person deemed most important in a
particular situation.
There are variations of teleology.
At one extreme are the egoists, who believe that the journalist should seek to
maximize good consequence for himself; at the other extreme are the utilitarian
who believe that one should promote that which is good to the greatest number
of people. The person best known for this version of this theory is the
nineteenth-century British philosopher John Stuart Mill.
When journalists appeal to the
public interest in justifying their actions they are acting as utilitarian. In
the same vein when a journalist acts in such way as to minimize hurt to a third
party such as a source or audience it is also utilitarian.
Personalist Ethics
The personalist justifies actions
on the basis of some kind of feeling or insight that are intuitive, spiritual or
emotive. For the most part, personalists are non-rational; they would rely on
conscience or other such transcendental parameters. Journalists who follow this path may rely on
their religious convictions in making ethical decisions.
This school of ethics is best
exemplified through philosophers such as C.S. Lewis or Danish philosopher,
Soren Kierkegaard.
Another aspect of ethical
principles are the virtue theories best articulated by Aristotle’s golden mean
which says that the proper way of behaving lies between doing too much and
doing too little. In other words, moderation is the key to morality. Virtue theories are directed at the building
of moral character and the premise that virtuous conduct involves learning to
avoid the extreme in any given situation.
Examples of golden mean are often
found in the media, when news organizations cover riots and disasters and try
to exercise moderation or restraint in the report so as not to inflame public
sensibilities.
HOW TO DO ETHICS?
There are numerous instances in the working
life of journalists in which personal ethical decisions have to be made in
order to resolve ethical dilemmas. This section presents three models that
journalists can use to make decisions that are ethically sound and
professionally acceptable even where the situation involves controversial areas
of professionalism.
One approach to doing ethics is to
use moral reasoning. Moral reasoning is
a systematic approach to making ethical decisions, relying primarily on logical
argument based on sound ethical theories.
The process requires knowledge in three areas: the moral context, the
moral theory, and critical thinking.
Day [1991:63-64] has developed a model based
in part on ideas advanced by Potter in “The logic of Moral Argument” –
the SAD formula – consisting of the situation definition, the analysis and the
decision. The situation definition
consists of a description of the facts and identification of the principles and
values inherent in the case or situation.
The analysis is where the journalist weighs the competing principles and
values, the various contextual factors involved, and the moral duties owed to
the various parties involved. The
decision, the final part, consists of taking an ethical decision that is
defensible based on one or more of the ethical theories or principles.
Another model is based on what
Black and other co-authors [1999:54-63] referred to as the principles of
duty. They averred that there are two approaches to making ethical
decisions – one is to decide what to do by weighing the consequences of one’s
actions; the other is to decide according to the principles of duty.
The principles of duty are the
guideposts upon which ethical and excellent practice of journalism is
based. These principles are entrenched
in all the codes of ethics across the world – truth telling, independence of
judgment and action, minimizing harm to third parties, and being accountable.
From these four fundamental principles emanate others which include, keeping
oneself informed, engaging and educating the public, giving voice to the
voiceless, holding the powerful accountable, guarding the media’s stewardship
role, seeking out and disseminating competing perspectives without being unduly
influenced, remaining free of conflicts of interest, and being compassionate to
sources, subjects, and colleagues.
To adhere to the principles of
duty, the journalist must ask himself questions that challenge him to consider
the consequences of his actions and honour the fundamental journalistic
principles of duty. One such question
is: Can I clearly and fully justify my decision and action to my colleagues,
stakeholders and the public?
Guiding Principles for the
Journalist
- Seek truth and report it. Journalists should
be honest, fair and courageous in gathering, reporting, and interpreting
information.
- Minimize harm. Ethical journalists treat
sources, subjects, and colleagues as human beings deserving of respect.
- Act independently. Journalists should be free
of obligation to any interest other than the public’s right to know.
- Be accountable. Journalists are accountable to
their readers, listeners, viewers and one another. [ Black, Steele, and Barney,
1999:28-29]
Merrill [1997:174-191] presents the third
ethical model being considered – the TUFF formula, which highlights the
characteristics usually considered essential for a good report or a good
reporter, a professional and ethical model.
The TUFF model provides four
concepts that guide reporters to being ethical and professional – reports
should be truthful, unbiased, full and fair. The first two concepts
truthfulness and unbiased-ness are deontological, whereas, the latter two:
fullness and fairness are teleological. Journalists who work based on
truthfulness and unbiased-ness tend to follow the ethics of principles of duty.
Others who work on the basis of fullness and fairness follow the ethics of
consequence. Merrill rightly recognizes that their may be a paradox between
these two ethical dimensions, especially between truthfulness and fairness. As
there may be situations in which the truthful journalist may not be fair,
especially to the subject of the report. For instance, a case in which the
names of a rape victim are published adheres to the truth, but is less
compassionate or fair to the victim.
To resolve such a paradox the
ethical journalist may have to make recourse to his own organizational
(newspaper’s) policies or professional guidelines.
Okunna [1995] in the preface to her
book on the ethics of mass communication quoted Merrill and Lowenstein as
saying that a concern for ethical practice is the ‘key plank’ for excellence in
journalism professionalism, and that it is also the ‘alpha and omega of public
communication’ of which the media is the centerpiece.
The Nigerian media, just like the
media in UK USA
Some have argued that this spate of unethical
practices of the media is not unconnected with the general state of the country
which is said to be ‘crawling with all manner of ethical maladies and unethical
behaviour’, as well as a culture that had ceased to value integrity, honesty
and hard work. [Okunna, 1995:7]
The result of this situation of
increasing corruption of the journalist is a moral panic over the media by
various sectors of the polity such that ethical consideration and criticism of
journalistic efforts have become a major preoccupation of politicians, captains
of industry, media pundits as well as the general public.
A moral panic has emerged in the
country as elsewhere in the UK USA
Such criticism as this have also
been leveled against the Nigerian media by various national opinion leaders,
notably, the Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, who berated the media
concerning the unethical practices associated with junk journalism.
In the Tribune of November 5, 2001, one Adedayo commented
concerning ethics and the media thus: ‘the ethical imperatives of accuracy,
balance and objectivity which the grand-dads of journalism like Herbert
Macaulay, Chief Babatunde Jose, Alade Odunewu and others handed down, have
taken flight. The situation is so
sickening today that various degrading epithets like “hired assassin”, “news
contractors” and sundry others have come to be affixed on a Nigerian media
practitioner’.
Kukah [1996:132-143] while acknowledging the
role the Nigerian media played in the liberation of the country at various
times in our history, and the fact that at one time the press legitimizes what
Nigerians consider to be the truth in any given situation, considers the media
in recent times and argued that ‘there is indeed a thin line between economic
expediency and moral standards’.
He further alluded to junk
journalism as an ‘evidence of the depth of decadence into which our society had
sunk’ and a ‘manifestation of generational problem within the ranks of the
press itself’. Kukah, [1996:139] opined that junk journalism had created
‘credibility problems for the people’s confidence’ in the Nigerian press, as it
lacked the ‘analytical value of education and real entertainment’ being
inundated with ‘lies and fabrications’.
Agbese, in an article, ‘Ethics in the Press:
An Insider View’ expressed concern over various unethical practices of the
Nigerian journalist and asserted that ‘the brown envelope is, perhaps, the most
eloquent evidence that journalists accept gratification in the course of their
duties’.
This, like nothing else, tarnished the image of the Nigerian press considerably. Most of us have, at one time or another decried this practice with a rather high-minded feeling of hurt. My understanding is that the gratification is now offered in more acceptable colours of the envelope, such as white or blue.
Some other
variant of gratification and corruption mentioned by Agbese, ‘is the practice
by some news editor and even editors who ask their reporters to make daily
returns to them’.
Such is the
level of corruption that certain beats are considered ‘lucrative’ and
journalists jostle to be posted to them. [Agbese, 2001]
This crave for
monetary gain from news sources and public relations spin doctors led to the
establishment of beat associations most of which were reputed to be so highly
corruptible that there were allegations of such extreme unethical practices as
blackmail.
Idowu
[1996:198-211] has listed the factors that can lead to unethical
practices: poor technical knowledge, conflict of interests, ownership pattern
and control, pressure of the market, poor pay, weak professional regulation,
and loose organizational policies and control.
He however
canvasses for a personal ethics on the part of individual journalist, as
morality can not be legislated nor adequately enforced through codes of
conduct.
From all
indications, the media in Nigeria
To this end, an
ethical code has been developed by the Nigerian Press Organization. In 1979 a
code of ethics was put together and adopted by the NPO but it was considered to
be deficient in ‘many vital areas’. It was said to lack ‘boldness,
forthrightness and clarity and looked more of a gratuitous contrivance which
could compound and obfuscate judgment of any perceived wrong doing in
journalism practice’.
In order to
correct the deficiencies of the 1979 code of ethics, a review process was
embarked on which began in March 1996, when the Press Council held a national
workshop in Ota, Ogun state in collaboration with the Nigerian Union of
Journalists (NUJ) and the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE).
The amended code
was then adopted and ratified at the Ilorin
Earlier, in 1992
the Nigerian Press Council was also inaugurated after a consensus was reached
between the media and the government. The main function of the Council is to
promote the highest ethical and professional standards and to receive and
adjudicate on public complaints about the media as well as journalist’s
complaints against government and its agents’ obstruction of media.
In addition,
many of the media organization have embarked on policies that present ethical
values as part of their corporate culture and staff journalists are encouraged
to work according to the highest ethical values. However, a lot still needs to
be done to make journalists imbibe personal ethical values and to improve on
their work conditions and job security.
NEW
TECHNOLOGIES AND ETHICAL CHALLENGES
There
is no doubt that the new technologies are impacting on the practice of
journalism such that today a wide array of possibilities are emerging in the
way journalists investigate, research and write stories as well as produce
content either on television or the press.
The
possibilities that are emerging are not without there various ethical
consequences, and in some areas these consequences are quite novel that legal
implications are as yet without precedence and ethical implications are at best
hazy and controversial.
In
the area of investigative journalism, technology has made possible the use of
hidden cameras and tape recorders. Should a journalist use these gadgets so
long as it enhances the investigative capabilities? The ethically pragmatic
journalists would answer in the positive and argue that every thing ought to be
done to get at and publish the truth because of integrity and the public’s
right to know. On the other hand, the ethically humanistic journalist may
answer in the negative arguing that these gadgets are instruments of deception
and the invasion or intrusion of people’s privacy. Should undercover reporting be accepted as a
standard in journalism? Are there any ways in which deception, and or intrusion
be justified in practice? Are there ways that hidden cameras and tape recorders
are used responsibly?
The
Society of Professional Journalists and the Poynter Institute of Media Studies
have provided some kind of ethical guidelines for the use of hidden cameras and
tape recorders and they say that such gadgets can be used where the information
obtainable is of profound importance, or where there are no other ways of
obtaining information, or when the good resulting from the use far outweighs
the hurt caused by the act of deception.
These
guidelines stated above, profound as they sound, still leave the ethical
dilemma to the personal ethics of the individual journalist and his subjective
definitions of the context in which the gadgets are used. These are some of the ethical dialectics
that are emerging as a result of the impact of technology on news investigation
and reporting. [Lissit, 1997:111-115]
Another
aspect of this discussion is the ethical dimensions of computer assisted
journalism. Computer-assisted
journalism, refers to the use of the computer by journalists not only for
gathering materials for reporting stories but also for more far reaching research
through online or internet databases, to gather lots of facts and records from
governmental and other agencies as well as a myriad of other sources, to
analyze those records, and to use such analysis as background for writing news
stories and in-depth reports. [Roat and Gotthoffer, 2001:31-35; Callahan,
2003:1-18]
The
main ethical dilemma concerning computer-assisted journalism is the credibility
of information and facts accessed on the internet. According to Callahan [2003:19-32] the
stunning growth of the internet has provided journalists with unprecedented
reporting opportunities, and unprecedented peril. This is because of the
proliferation of ‘rumours and misinformation on the internet’.
One
of the things that makes the internet so appealing is that anyone can pull off
the net so much of information, but the other side of the coin is that anyone
can also put anything on-line. The internet has both useful and truthful
information as well as trash and idle gossip, and many reporters using it have
no clue as to which is which. The internet has no gatekeepers therefore
information on it may be untruthful while it carries a seemingly
authoritativeness usually ascribed to the written word. This is the essence of
the ethics of using information culled from the internet. Internet sources must
be evaluated for their integrity and journalists would do well not to believe
all that they get on-line. A healthy skepticism is imperative here when quoting
or culling from the net.
Another
aspect of the ethical dimensions of new media technology is the fact that the
internet itself has become a haven for people to publish whatever they deem fit
for public consumption. Any one with a little bit of computer knowledge can
create a website either by himself or through the help of a professional
webmaster and provide information on the World Wide Web as much as any of the
well known and well organized news media organizations or other such social
institutions. The freedom to publish
on-line by just about anybody, laudable as it is, can be grossly abused and has
been so done through the availability of objectionable material, such as racist
literature and obscene literature and pictures.
Today
hard core pornography can be accessed almost without any hindrance by anyone
including the pre-adult and children. While some believe that such obscene
material should be banned, others believe that the materials should be
restricted and made unavailable to minors.
Opponents argue that banning any materials violate the right to free speech
and that the express freedom now enjoyed by the Web should not be curtailed in
any way. [ Shelly, Cashman, Vermaat and Walker, 1999:14.23-14.27]
Today’s
technology of digital photography has also brought about better production
possibilities as well as ethical problems through digital retouching of
photographs and animation.
Digitalization
is quite a laudable technological breakthrough in print and broadcast
journalism resulting in crispier pictures, sharper and fuller colours, and
better shots can be achieved than used to be possible. However, the other side
of the coin is the capability to retouch photographs such that they can be
manipulated to show pictures in whatever way desired by the skillful reporter.
In
other words, technology has made the adage ‘pictures don’t lie’ false – photographs
can now be manipulated such that pictures can now lie. To retouch photographs especially with a view
to distort information on them is unethical and journalists should be
discouraged from such a practice.
Another
aspect of this is the capabilities made available through animation. While
animation has resulted in greater possibilities for film and cinematography as
well as for television commercials, it has also made possible the abuse of
falsifying images with its attendant ethical implications.
By
and large, new media and communication technologies have brought hitherto
unimaginable possibilities and capabilities to the practice of journalism and
so have they brought hitherto unheard of ethical problems.
CONCLUSIONS
In
conclusion, this discourse shall endeavour to look at two aspects, the need for
a more ethical press and whether ethics ought to be taught in journalism
schools.
There
is no doubt that the media have come under public scrutiny and an increasingly
scathing berating due to the corruptibility and commercialism that have
bedeviled them.
This
situation tends to be a global phenomenon. Merrill [1997:1-26]
acknowledges that journalism and its
practitioners are increasingly being cast as social villains, dispensing
superficial, negative and sensational information harmful to the health of
society and that this situation calls for a more ethical press that would
eliminate or at least reduce the public’s loss of faith in the media.
In
other words, it is imperative for the media to practice in a more ethical way
in all ramifications so that the credibility gap already created can be
gradually eliminated.
This
is even more so in the case of the Nigerian media where gross unethical
practices have become more or less the order of the day. The credibility gap
had been created in the first instance by the insensitivity, arrogance, and
gross unethical behaviour by journalists, a situation that has been berated
even from within the profession itself, especially, by the veterans.
There
is definitely a need for a more ethical and responsible media if the situation
must be corrected and the credibility gap between the public and the press be
eliminated.
To
do this some have argued that journalism should be ‘professionalized’ in the
sense of having minimum entry requirements, or licensing, and meaningful and
forceful codes of ethics as well as systems for removing recalcitrant and
unethical practitioners. Others have
called for a more ethical corporate culture within individual news
organizations.
All
of this amounts to a clear call for a committed house cleaning and
self-examination by journalists so that a growing sense of professional
responsibility can be imbibed by the media individually and severally.
The
other aspect is the question whether ethics ought to be taught in journalism
schools and where that is already being done whether it is being done
adequately well such that this can contribute to improvements in the ethical
environment of the media.
The
question whether ethics ought to be taught is not as easy to answer as it
looks. There two schools of thought
concerning this matter – cynics contend that ethics is not a proper subject for
study because it raises questions without providing clear answers and that
knowing ethics does not produce an ethical person neither does it mean doing
ethics. The other school of thought
proponents of formal ethics assert that the study of ethics is the key to
understanding moral conduct and to improving the individuals ability to cope
with ethical exigencies of the real world of practice.
Secondly,
the study of ethics, they believe can encourage moral reasoning, stimulate the
individuals moral imagination and thus develop his ability to think critically
about ethical issues.
According
to Day [1991: 6-12] even though journalists are better educated now than ever
before, many are ill-prepared to cope with the ethics of the profession
therefore it may be advantageous to make them confront ethical issues first in
the classrooms before the real world of practice. This contention supports the position that
ethics ought to be taught in the classroom, if not for any reason but that
students can confront ethical dilemmas and rationally discuss them before they
face them under the pressure of the real world of practice.
The
other aspect of this question is whether ethics is being thought well and how
can it be taught better. The general notion is that ethics could not have been
taught well in any journalism classroom where the lecturer does not use a lot
of real life case studies and small group discussion methods.
The
teaching of ethics may not directly solve the prevalence of unethical behaviour
among professionals but it can at least provide the students with the basics of
ethical reasoning and with tools to make it easier for them to live with
ethical values that can make them cope with the ethical realities of the
profession.
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