By Casey Bukro
Ethics AdviceLine for Journalists
Journalists sometimes go undercover in search of information, or consider doing so in the public interest.
Journalists call the Ethics AdviceLine for Journalists asking about the wisdom of this practice. Here are some of those cases:
A Colorado broadcaster asked if there were any ethical problems with entering several schools in Colorado undercover with a concealed camera to see if he would be stopped and questioned. This would be in connection with recent school shootings.
In another case, a staff writer for an Arizona newspaper asked if it would be ethical to do a story showing how easy it would be to buy drugs by sending a reporter and a photographer out with $20 bills.
In a third case, a Canadian TV network asked about the wisdom of testing airport security by trying to sneak a weapon through security.
If you were an ethics advisor, what would you tell these journalists?
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The Ethics AdviceLine for Journalists was founded in 2001 by the Chicago Headline Club (Chicago Professional Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists) and Loyola University Chicago Center for Ethics and Social Justice. It partnered with the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University in 2013. It is a free service.
Professional Journalists are invited to contact the Ethics AdviceLine for Journalists for guidance on ethics. Call 866-DILEMMA or ethicsadvicelineforjournalists.org.
Visit the Ethics AdviceLine blog for more.