How some news organizations track you online
By Aaron Bonner In 2017, information is available in a matter of milliseconds, from cake recipes to a politician’s tax forms, but the availability of certain information has created privacy concerns for both journalists and readers. With more news organizations shifting to an online readership, readers have begun to question the information gathered by each […]
Photos can put unnecessary tragedy on display
By lepilat — From JCM 493 Blog post 1 Imagine a family that had barely come to understand the tragic death of their son when local news stations started publishing photos from the car accident. Images spread across the community and are quickly adopted by national outlets as well. Pictures of his death are now spread across […]
Sen. Ted Cruz’s Twitter scandal reveals misguided motivations
By Maddy Ard — From JCM 493 Blog post 1 Last week saw the aftermath of two destructive hurricanes, controversy over DACA’s legal status, and threats of nuclear war. Somehow, amid these monumental events, the issue which has the internet buzzing has nothing to do with life-altering instances and everything to do with Sen. Ted Cruz’s Twitter […]
Are millennial ‘community’ sites real journalism? One group’s odyssey to find out
A collection of University of Alabama students built a final project for an ethics class that asks a simple but profound question: Are millennial sites such as Buzzfeed Community, Medium, Huffington Post Community, HerCampus or the Odyssey real journalism sites, or something else? Their site — the Iliad 499 — is worth a look.
Project Voco, a new voice editing technology, raises ethical questions
By Peyton Shepherd Media outlets have faced mounting discontent from some of their readership concerned about biased reporting, and the continued development of editing software has the potential to fan the “fake news” flames. In November, computer software company Adobe premiered an add-on to its audio editing program that has the capability to accurately replicate […]
Lying for the sake of truth is still a lie
By Cokie Thompson When I tell people I’m studying journalism, they have one of two reactions. Their eyes light up and they comment on how this is an incredible time to be in the field, or their eyes narrow and they ask whether I want to work for Fox or MSNBC. I’m also studying political […]
‘S-town’ podcast raises an s-load of ethical questions
By Mary Shannon Wells Even if you didn’t listen to it yourself, the murder mystery podcast “Serial,” which was monumental for both investigative journalism and the podcast platform, got a lot of media attention. Despite its popularity, “Serial” brought with it some ethical issues for the field of investigative journalism, which often hangs out in the […]
‘Angry’ Joe Vargas: an Echo in the Spiral of Silence
By Kasey Hullett Joe Vargas quit his cubicle job back in 2008 shortly after doing a review for the latest Madden franchise game. The video combined sketch and serious criticism. It showed football players tackling developers in the game studio. The video shortly went viral and soon enough the developer contacted Vargas and assured him […]
Aristotle and Persuasion: Are Gossip Magazines Doing This Right?
By Anna Van Der Like According to the New World Encyclopedia, “celebrity” journalism is less reputable than other types of journalism. Some would argue that these gossip columns are not journalistic at all. Yet they are incredibly successful and continue to sell even in a time when print media is slowly fading away. Aristotle taught […]