Are Journalists Given Enough Ethics Training?
As a second reporter at Georgia’s Macon Telegraph leaves the paper amid allegations of plagiarism — a charge the reporter denies — some are questioning whether journalists get enough training on proper use of the Internet, what is and isn’t plagiarism, and journalistic ethics in general.
“What happens is there is a lack of clarity,” Aly Colon, ethics group leader and diversity program director at the Poynter Institute, told Journal-isms. “It [clarity] is not telling people this is wrong. Zero tolerance is not clarity about why it’s important and what it means. This is really in many respects a state of mind. Ethics should be as common to the conversation as how do you write a good lede, how do you make sure the quotes are right.”
In the latest incident, reporter Greg Fields, 27, resigned Sunday night.
As Executive Editor Sherrie Marshall explained to readers on Tuesday:
“His resignation came as we completed a review of his work on a story about the Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus. The day that story was published, his editor received a call from a circus public relations official who said Fields had written about the wrong version of the circus that would be visiting Macon and that the story incorrectly attributed statements to a circus spokesperson.
“Those accusations were serious enough, but a closer look at the story revealed that much of it came from the ‘Circus Report,’ described on the Ringling Bros. Web site as a ‘weekly newsletter for circus fans and professionals.’ The reporter said the circus spokesperson had referred him to the Web site for details and that he thought the material he used was from an official circus press release.
“The ‘Circus Report’ story did appear as a link on the Ringling Bros. Web site, but it carried a byline and note atop it thanking the author for permission to post the story. Even if it had been a press release, it would have been inappropriate to use the information in the manner in which it appeared in Fields’ story.
“Fields acknowledged his mistakes with the circus story. He was remorseful and said he had not intended to take credit for someone else’s work.”
Fields told Journal-isms that “I don’t feel like I plagiarized,” and invited readers to compare his story, which is at the end of today’s posting, with the information in the “Circus Report” story. “They’ll see I’m not a plagiarist,” he said.
But “I made a mistake,” Fields acknowledged. He said he resigned because “I had the gut feeling that they were going to fire me, so I figured the right thing to do is let me take this pressure off my editors. They had gone through 60-70 of my stories. They had sent my stories to a plagiarism lab in Fort Worth. The more meetings we had, the more it became apparent to me that they were gathering a case.”
Asked what training he had received in plagiarism, he said “We didn’t necessarily have training. We had a meeting about what happened to Khalil [Abdullah, who was fired for plagiarism in March]; we had a plagiarism committee that sent out discussions. . . . I certainly don’t absolve myself,” he continued. “The average journalist should know how hazardous using information from the Internet is.”
In the newsroom of the Knight Ridder paper, there were varying reactions. “I don’t think it was as big as he [Fields] may have thought,” said copy editor Rashida Rawls, president of the Middle Georgia Association of Black Journalists.
But Travis Fain, a white reporter who is on the plagiarism committee, said, “The entire industry needs to take a look” at the plagiarism issue. “This is more common than anyone has previously” acknowledged. Of the Fields incident, he said the “Circus Report” was “clearly marked” as another reporter’s work.
Marshall declined to comment. Factor into the mix, if you like, that both she and the managing editor, Mike McQueen, like Fields and Abdullah, are African American.
Outside the newsroom, Stephen C. Miller, assistant to the technology editor at the New York Times, who teaches the use of computers to do investigative work, said after reading Marshall’s explanation that the resignation “seems incredibly harsh. In some ways, it’s your fault,” he said of the editors. “Did anyone do training on how to avoid this stuff? Saying, ‘here’s the thing to avoid; it’s easy to do’? It’s on the Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey site. What happened is, he went off on a link. He needed a reprimand, given the way this was described.”
Colon, at the Poynter Institute, said he didn’t think that plagiarism exists any more now than previously. “Today it’s easier to do it and easier to find it,” he said. “I don’t know how many times I read of reporters who put their names on top of a press release, and some PR people portray that as a coup for them.
“The focus is on the punitive [rather] than on the prescriptive,” added Colon. “When you’re focused on sin, you’re going to find it and you’re going to punish it.” What Colon said he wants to know is, “how many journalism schools require ethics and how do they teach it in a way that’s important? How do newsrooms inform, inculcate?”
Colon wrote a piece on the subject last January, “Great Journalists Credit Others”.
As for Fields, he said that “if there’s anything I’m worried about, it’s adding to the feeling that you can’t trust black journalists.”
A 2000 graduate of Florida A&M University, he said he might go to graduate school, but he’d really like to continue in journalism. “The P-word is deadly. It can end your career,” he said. But “if someone decides to take a chance on me, I’d be more than happy to spend my career showing them how right they were.”
Orlando Plagiarism Charges Escape Much Attention
Another case involving plagiarism allegations, this time involving a young white reporter at the Orlando Sentinel, seems to have flown under the radar, or, as one black reporter at the paper fears, been “swept under the rug.”
“Emily Badger is living the dream of many a Medill School of Journalism student: fresh out of college, she’s a general assignment sports reporter for the Orlando Sentinel. Idyllic, really — except for those pesky charges of plagiarism,” wrote Torea Frey, public editor ot the Daily Northwestern at Badger’s alma mater.
“Badger, Medill ’03, who served as The Daily’s managing editor during Winter Quarter 2003, faced allegations by Jim Clark in a May 2004 issue of Orlando Magazine that she lifted excerpts from a book for a piece published in the Sentinel’s spring training guide.
“On its face Clark’s evidence seems damning: A simple comparison of sentences from each work was enough to make me second guess the woman who was my boss for three months. Some examples, according to the Clark article, follow.”
The piece continued:
“. . . Although the Sentinel printed a clarification listing several omitted sources, it is debatable the extent to which this situation points to a major deficiency on Badger’s part. However, Badger does agree that the experience taught her the importance of accurate, fair reporting.
“‘Sorry to say it’s a pretty unsexy scandal,’ she wrote. ‘If you want to learn anything from this case, it’s this: Sports departments do a notoriously poor job of sourcing. We run national notebooks (chocked) full of (Associated Press) info, we reprint quotes we assume came from public-domain press conferences . . .
“‘This is a pretty unhealthy culture that sets many sports departments apart from the rest of their papers — and it’s something my editors have learned a lot about in the last couple of months, at my expense,'” the story continued.
The Orlando Magazine piece faulted the newspaper.
Referring to Alan Byrd, author of the book in question, and Manning Pynn, the Sentinel’s public editor, Clark wrote that:
“Byrd says that Pynn called back and said the paper would publish a ‘clarification.’ That?s a sort of half step, somewhere between admitting nothing and admitting that something wrong had happened. It leaves it to the reader to guess whether it was just a mistake (perhaps the credits got left off merely by accident?). Byrd says he was satisfied. Still, it took more than two weeks before the ‘clarification’ was published. It didn?t mention Badger, and simply said that the spring training preview should have ‘credited some research’ to Byrd?s book. Apparently, Badger didn?t simply rely on Byrd?s book-?the correction went on to detail a laundry list of 18 other sources Badger had used but failed to credit. The correction didn?t mention anything about the similarities between what the various authors had produced and what Badger wrote.”
Pynn told Journal-isms today that “this wasn’t really plagiarism. She rewrote what looked like his thoughts.”
The public editor said that after the correction was published, “Alan Byrd thought that was a very good resolution.” The reporter “was admonished. She understood that and we moved on.”
Then he added:
“The Sentinel distinguishes between corrections and clarifications. The newspaper corrects errors of fact, misspellings or proper names, anything that is demonstrably incorrect. It clarifies anything that does not present incorrect information but could leave readers with a mistaken impression.
“Jim Clark’s article/column in Orlando magazine seems to make an issue of the Sentinel not having corrected the sourcing of the information the newspaper published about Spring Training baseball parks, but the information was not incorrect. The omission of the list of sources for that information likely left readers with the impression that the Sentinel collected that information, which it did not. So the newspaper clarified where it had gleaned that information.
“The information used in thumbnail descriptions of the ballparks, though, was not plagiarized, as in lifting something verbatim. Several of the descriptions used phrasing similar to that in the Byrd book, and Emily Badger acknowledged having drawn her information from that and other sources — which the Sentinel subsequently credited.
“As for ethics training, we hold regular sessions on that topic for the staff as part of our in-house Newsroom University.”
Jury Deadlocked on Ex-QVC Host’s Bias Charge
“After five full days of deliberations, a federal civil jury announced yesterday that it was deadlocked on a key claim in the race discrimination and retaliation case against QVC by former host Gwen Owens,” Joseph A. Slobodzian reports in the Philadelphia Inquirer.
“The nine jurors — reduced by one from the 10 at the trial’s start — contacted U.S. District Judge Eduardo C. Robreno at noon, saying they could not return a unanimous verdict on the second liability question on the verdict form: whether Owens was fired in 1998 because she is African American.
“The jurors did not indicate whether they had reached verdicts on five other liability issues. Those include whether QVC managers assigned Owens to overnight on-air shifts because of race, whether she was paid less than white male hosts because of gender, and whether QVC retaliated against Owens for suing by poisoning her chance for an anchor job at Comcast’s CN8 regional cable news channel.”
Owens continues to work as a reporter for CN8, the story says.
Kripalani, Singh Win Business Reporting Awards
Manjeet Kripalani of Business Week and Abhay Singh of Bloomberg News were among the winners in New York Monday night at the Gerald Loeb Awards Banquet, which recognized work by business and financial journalists. The awards are sponsored by the UCLA Anderson School of Management.
Kripalani, Aaron Bernstein and Pete Engardio won in the magazine category for ?Is Your Job Next / The Rise of India,? which the judges called “an engaging presentation that opened the raging debate on offshoring, exploring it completely on topics ranging from the political and economic fallout to the upsides for business and downsides for workers.”
Singh, Adrian Cox and David Evans won in the news services or online content category for ?The Flimflam Man,? “a fascinating look at the risky world of high-stakes trading and the anything-goes atmosphere of the boom years.”
Frustrated Native Journalist Writes Letter to Editor
The Providence Journal Friday ran this unusual letter from John Christian Hopkins, a staff writer for The Pequot Times, the tribal newspaper of the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation in Connecticut, a Sunday columnist for The Westerly (R.I.) Sun, and author of a novel about an Indian youth who is sold as a slave in the West Indies, but is determined to become free:
“If you’re a regular reader of The Journal, then you have probably never heard of me. That is because I am a Narragansett Indian who has no criminal record, doesn’t overindulge in alcohol or drugs, and is not making speeches about a casino.
“I am a Narragansett Indian who has a college degree, a good job, and a loving family. This is all boring stuff, of course. Judging by the way that The Journal portrays tribal members, you might have the impression that we all punch policemen or drive unregistered cars.
“Since last fall I’ve been trying to get The Journal interested in doing a piece on me. You see, last October I realized by lifelong dream of becoming an author. Not only that, but on the day that the press started on my first book, Carlomagno, my second, Nacogdoches, was accepted.
“I thought my story might be of some interest since I am a former tribal councilman, once wrote a nationally syndicated newspaper column, and, in 2003, became the first Native journalist to win writing awards in four different categories during the Native American Journalists Association’s convention.
“On top of all that, I am a descendant of King Ninigret, and my wife, Cindy, is a descendant of Ninigret’s 17th Century contemporary Roger Williams!
“None of this interests the state’s biggest newspaper, of course. To show a Narragansett Indian in a successful light might undermine the erroneous image of the tribe that The Journal seems bent on perpetuating.
“JOHN CHRISTIAN HOPKINS (STANDING BEAR)
“Westerly”
Philly Journalists to Hold Vernon Jarrett Tribute
The Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists is holding a memorial on the eve of the NAACP convention for legendary journalist Vernon Jarrett from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m on Friday, July 9, at the Inquirer/Daily News Building, 400 North Broad St.
Jarrett died May 24 of cancer at age 85.
The NAACP is planning a special commemoration video featuring Jarrett at the ACT-SO program at the convention, NAACP spokesman John White told Journal-isms today. ACT-SO is the acronym for the Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics, the academic competition that Jarrett founded. “In addition, a bronze bust of Vernon will be presented to his son, Tommy Jarrett, and the ACT-SO choir will sing a song in Vernon’s memory,” White said.
For more information on the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists event, contact the organization at (215) 949-4195.
Black Journalism?s Bright Light (Salim Muwakkil, In These Times)
NABJ’s Sheila Brooks on Being a Joiner
“Relationship building comes up again and again when women describe their success,” Anne Fisher writes in her Fortune Small Business article, “Female Entrepreneurs: Why Women Rule.”
“Now that woman-owned businesses are so numerous and so robust, female entrepreneurs are helping one another the way men always have.
“Says Sheila Brooks, 47, an African American and a former TV newscaster who owns a fast-growing video production and Internet-streaming company called SRB Productions in Washington, D.C.: ‘I’ve always been a joiner of professional groups, starting back when I was in TV news, partly because as both a woman and a minority I really feel we have to band together to get anywhere. Men have always known how to do this, how to maneuver, whom to play golf with. But women are learning now too ?- and some of us have excelled at it.'”
Brooks joined NABJ in 1977 and has been a board member, worked with students on NABJ’s convention TV projects, and received the NABJ President’s Award at the UNITY ’99 Convention in Seattle.
She also met her husband, Rodney Brooks, deputy managing editor of the Money Section of USA Today, through the organization.
Free Workshops for 200 J-Teens at Unity
“On Wednesday, Aug. 4 and Thursday, Aug. 5, 2004, middle and high school-aged (19 and under) students and non-students of all ethnicities are invited to participate in the Creating Future Journalists program being coordinated by the Hispanic Link Journalism Foundation of Washington, D.C. The program is geared toward students of color who are interested in pursuing careers in journalism,” Hispanic Link announces.
“At the UNITY: Journalists of Color Convention, attended by 7,000 professional journalists, the teenagers will engage in a series of special activities to expose them to opportunities in a variety of media careers. Young people with or without journalism experience are encouraged to participate.
“Interested parties should register as soon as possible. Only 200 participants will be allowed to attend and all must register in advance of the program.”
Hampton U. Student Editor Piling Up the Honors
Talia Buford, the student editor of the Hampton Script at Hampton University, is piling up honors in the aftermath of a school year in which the Hampton administration confiscated the student newspaper and then, after a task force met in the midst of national publicity over the incident, granted the paper editorial freedom.
The Scripps Howard Foundation announced this month that Buford is one of 10 winners of a $10,000 scholarship.
Last month, Buford won a Hugh M. Hefner First Amendment Award from the Playboy Foundation “for serving as an inspiration to student journalists everywhere when she won the promise of an uncensored student newspaper.”
And at Unity, Buford is to be presented with the first-ever NABJ Student Journalist of the Year award. That follows a Special Recognition award from the Hampton Roads Black Media Professionals.
A First Amendment Hero Took Her Paper to Freedom (Titus Ledbetter III, Black College Wire)
The Offending Macon Telegraph Story
Friday, June 25, 2004
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus performing at Macon Coliseum
By Greg Fields; Telegraph Staff Writer
A Ringling Bros. party doesn’t stop.
Some circuses aren’t what they used to be, but Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey is trying hard to maintain its standard of excellence.
The 134th edition of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Hometown Edition rolls into the Macon Coliseum June 23-27.
The show starts at 7:30 p.m. June 23-25, 11:30 a.m. on June 26 and 1 p.m. on June 27. Tickets are $10-$30 for adults and $5 for children accompanied by an adult.
The storied traveling circus is a two-hour adventure full of talented performers, animal acts, music, props and special effects. Expect a heavy dose of trapeze artists and acrobats.
Though there are traditional circus acts of elephants and jugglers, “Tempting Fate Daily,” a show built around death-defying stunts, should be the most exciting. Closing the first portion of the 134th edition is “Crazy” Wilson Dominguez, a Peruvian-born daredevil who will perform stunts on top of a large pendulum.
The show is also impressive visually, said Holly Clifford, a circus spokeswoman. At various times the interior of the show is transformed from a country barnyard to a futuristic rock ‘n’ roll stage. The show opens with an elephant long mount, and capes that the performers have been wearing on the track fly up into the rigging to become colorful banners.
The opening parade features the entire company, and the master of ceremonies introduces the audience to David Larible, Danette Sheppard, and Wilson and Sylvia Zerbini as the show kicks into high gear. The arena is then transformed into a sunny barnyard full of clowns, dancers and 30-foot-tall sunflowers, with Larible playing a hoedown on the fiddle. Audience members are chosen to ride on wagons around the track before stopping for a ringside view of animal antics.
Sheppard, the show’s first featured female vocalist, is a crowd favorite, Clifford said. She sings duets with Ringmaster Kevin Venardos in the production numbers, but she also has several featured tunes during the performance, including jazz numbers and solos as a 20-foot-tall “sorceress” introducing the flying act amid scores of giant, glowing butterflies.
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey hasn’t been all smiles this year, though, as the circus has dealt with several difficult circumstances, including the recent death of a trapeze artist.
While Clifford would not comment on those incidents, she said that appropriate action has been taken to ensure the safety of the performers and circusgoers.
To contact Greg Fields, call 744-4251 or e-mail gfields@macontel.com
