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The Challenges Immigrants Face

Journalism Ethics Assignment

Both Jayson Blair and Stephen Glass affected journalism ethics. Like many of their colleagues and the public, their actions made me feel ashamed. Their actions are things that some members of the public accuse the press of all the time. It is sad that some journalists feel the need to lie when the main principle of our career is give the facts to the public.

In the research I did on Glass and Blair I found similarities in their reasoning why they committed plagiarism and fabrication although how they committed their crimes differed. Glass worked for The New Republic as an associate editor. He was only 25 years old. Aside from writing articles and working for The New Republic, Glass also wrote for other magazines including Policy Review, George, Rolling Stone, and Harper’s. After an investigation by The New Republic, 27 of 41 stories that Glass wrote between 1995 and 1998 had fabrications. Sources could not be verified; Glass made up whole stories, sources, and quotes. Majority of the stories reported as “news” were nearly Glass’s imagination. Jayson Blair had a similar story. Blair worked for the New York Times as a reporter. Blair was a graduate of the University of Maryland and served as the Editor-in-Chief of the school newspaper during his time in college. Blair resigned from the Times in 2003 due to fabrication and plagiarism. Blair’s fabrications came to the light after a previous intern for the Times wrote a story in a San Antonio newspaper that closely resembled one of Blair’s article. Blair used details from multiple other stories in his own work.

What was most interesting to me in both Glass and Blair’s stories was that their companies were either warned or had a sense that something was not write with the articles the individuals wrote. Throughout Glass’s time at The New Republic the “errors” in his work were pointed out by the organizations and businesses the stories were about. Even though they pointed out his inaccuracies and hinted to plagiarism his magazine and staff backed his stories and character. Blair’s colleagues at the Times, staff and reporters, said that Blair committed critical errors that brought his integrity into question. Despite both of the news organizations having a feeling about these men neither one of them took immediate action.

Blair and Glass showed journalists that we need to have open discussion of ethics, and what is considered right and wrong needs to be repeated and made very clear for reporters to understand. Although it may feel like common knowledge to anyone properly trained in journalism, the issue of plagiarism, fabrications, and right and wrong is a discussion that must be had among media outlets and their employees.

Here is an updated version of my first package: HU Joins Fight Against Ebola

In this package I discuss how Howard University is playing a role in the discussion and action against the deadly Ebola virus.

Click the link above to go to the video.

Reporter: James Ford, PIX11

Click the link above to go to the video.

Reporter: Gio Benitez, ABC