Ethics

Our ethics section examines the professional standards that guide responsible journalism. Explore principles of impartiality, fairness, accuracy, and journalistic integrity while also learning to navigate challenging ethical dilemmas journalists face in their daily work. All our material is free to download, adapt and use. Scroll down our site map for all the content in this and other sections.

Ethics

Offence and journalism

Ethics

Impartiality in journalism

Ethics

Accuracy in journalism

Image by Lanty released via Creative Commons CC BY 2.0

Photojournalism and ethics

The following are commonly accepted ethical guidelines for photojournalists adopted by most mainstream media.

Image by Péter Smets released via Creative Commons CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Accuracy in journalism

Precision is the soul of journalism. Rule one is simple: get it right. If you can't respect the absolute need for accuracy, this isn't the career for you.

Image to illustrate conflict of interest - created using Imagen 3 by David Brewer of MHM

Conflicts of interest

In journalism, public trust is essential for credibility. One of the most significant threats to that trust are the many possible conflicts of interest that might confront journalists.

Image by Eric Peacock released via Creative Commons CC BY-NC-SA 2.0

Offence and journalism

Rigorous journalism inevitably offends some audiences. Global broadcasters must cover all aspects of human experience to reflect world affairs accurately.

Image by Tori Rector released via Creative Commons CC BY-SA 2.0

Fairness in journalism

Fairness in journalism means exploring all sides of an issue and reporting the findings accurately.

Image of the Impartial reporter pub by Kenneth Allen released via Creative Commons CC BY-SA 2.0

Impartiality in journalism

For journalists, being impartial means presenting information without demonstrating favouritism towards any specific viewpoint or party.

Image by Mushki Brichta via Wikimedia Commons

Unconscious bias and journalism

Bias is a prejudice for or against a group, often leading to unfair judgements. While it's a normal human trait, understanding our biases is vital for fairness.

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Is your journalism ethical?

Reliable journalism is based on applying strict editorial ethics to all we do so that we can examine the issues that have the most impact on the lives of our audience.