Ethics. It is what makes or breaks a journalist. When writing a story, a journalist is expected to tell the truth. However, how far do you take the truth? During my internship with Today Newspaper, I was pushed to question my own ethics as a journalist and the ethics of Today newspaper. Since my first week, the paper has made choices that I have viewed as ethically incorrect. They would often pull images from Google without citing them. When I initially questioned my Copy Editor about this, he just said that they only cite them sometimes. Throughout my time at Today, I was asked to pull photos from Google images, fashion website, and other articles all choices that I felt were unethically correct. However, here is the thing you must remember when reporting from a foreign country. This isn’t your country. What I may have learned at the School of Journalism and Communication (SOJC) at the University of Oregon (UO) does not apply to foreign law. UO only teaches us to write from an American standpoint. So the real question is this, is it more ethical to respect the customs of the country you are in or is it more ethical to follow the taught principles you learned in another country? In the U.S. they teach us what viewpoints are correct. Their own version of right and wrong.
However, if you enter another country they have their own version of right and wrong. So, which country is more valid? Neither. Each has its own set of principles and it’s important to
remember that you need to respect the choices that a country makes. You may not agree with their choice but its crucial to understanding the viewpoint you grew up with and were taught is not globally correct. Everywhere around the world has their own version of right and wrong. We need to be open-minded that not everyone came from the same background as we did. Keeping this in mind will help you as not only a student but as a person understand that the world is filled with different opinions and thoughts. And no one has more value over the other.
So, at the end of the day what is my view on the ethically correct choice to do? While in Ghana, with respect to my paper’s ethical code I will pull photos from Google images. I will respect what they deem as correct in their own culture. But, what when it comes to me writing my own articles on my own free will, I will be using only photos that I have credit for and permission to use. Neither choice is better than the other. Ethics is a thing that is unique to each individual person, company, and country. We need to respect each other’s choices. Even if it is not the one we grew up knowing as “correct”.