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CRAFTING CODES OF

ETHICS FOR JEWISH

JOURNALISM AJPA Conference | Nov. 10, 2015 | Washington, DC

ABSTRACT

How understanding Jewish ethical

values can make you a better

journalist Alan D. Abbey Shira Dicker

Maayan Jaffe Marshall Weiss

Crafting Codes of Ethics for Jewish Journalism, American Jewish Press Association 2015 Conference Washington, DC, November 10, 2015, Alan D. Abbey, Shalom Hartman Institute, Jerusalem, [email protected]

Do Jewish values demand that journalists in Jewish media develop and follow a Code of Ethics?

Should a Code of Ethics for Jewish media incorporate Jewish values? In October 2013, 30 Jewish teens came together in Los Angeles for the first convention and Shabbaton of the Jewish Scholastic Press Association and established a quiet but remarkable turning point for Jewish media in North America. Students from high school newspapers from the Jewish day school world and their advisors gathered to learn from each other and professional journalists, to, in the words of Joelle Keene, faculty advisor to The Boiling Point, of Shalhevet High School of Los Angeles help students become “educated, top-flight journalists who can one day lead college and professional publications, adhering to the highest standards of objectivity and thoroughness while employing Jewish values.” JSPA, she writes, looks at journalism “through an explicitly Jewish lens.” Those looking from the outside in — whether from the non-Jewish community or members of the Jewish community who don’t work in our field — might consider Keene’s goal for the student group obvious, that Jewish media outlets would naturally interweave Jewish values as part of our professional standards. But in practical terms, Keene’s pronouncements were bold and ambitious, even chutzpadik. They should lead editors, publishers and journalists who labor in our field to ask: Can Jewish media outlets employ Jewish values as we navigate ethical dilemmas in journalism? And if we can, should we? Reporting Jewish: Do journalists have the tools to succeed? In 2013, AJPA and the IEngage Project of the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem partnered on a survey to find out the literacy level of journalists and editors who work in Jewish media regarding Judaism, Jewish ethics, Israel, and generally-accepted Western media ethics. More than 100 journalists with Jewish media outlets in North America (and some in Israel and Europe) responded to our survey. Key survey findings gave us a snapshot of the journalist in American Jewish media and taught us that they are a dedicated and devoted group with virtually all of the tools they need to succeed:

Journalists with Jewish media are highly educated. 99% of survey respondents have college or advanced degrees (nearly one-half have a master’s degree, and 7% have a Ph.D.), compared to 62% of the overall American Jewish population having a college degree or more.

Nearly half of survey respondents studied journalism or another communications field in college.

Nearly half of the survey respondents have worked in journalism for more than 20 years.


24 percent of survey respondents identified themselves as Orthodox Jews, 13 percent as Reform, 23 percent Conservative, 20 percent just Jewish.

61 percent said they have studied Israel in an educational setting.

The percentage of journalists who have visited Israel three or more times, 64%, is the same as American Jews who have never been to Israel.

More than 90 percent of North American survey participants said that being Jewish is extremely or very important in their lives, compared with slightly more than one-third of the Jewish population.

Also of note is that North American respondents were less likely to view themselves as “detached observers” who keep themselves apart from their community than mainstream North American journalists, and that the respondents were more willing to advocate and influence public opinion than their mainstream counterparts. A point of concern to AJPA among the results was that respondents were more willing than mainstream American journalists to apply situational ethics. At the same time, these North American respondents were slightly less willing than Israeli journalists to adjust their ethical standards to a specific situation. Respondents were asked to rank their agreement with the statements:

• Journalists should always adhere to codes of professional ethics, regardless of situation and context

• What is ethical in journalism depends on the specific situation • What is ethical in journalism is a matter of personal judgment.

Survey results didn’t completely explain why North American Jewish media answered the questions with a slight leaning toward moral relativism. One interpretation is that they felt comfortable using what they perceived as their innate – dare we say, Jewish – moral compass in relying on their own instincts. Yet the results can also lead to the conclusion that they haven’t studied general ethics or media ethics, let alone Jewish ethics. The results served as a wake-up call for AJPA and indicated the value that studying Jewish values in the context of journalism ethics is needed and a project of significant importance. We can and should train our journalists about Jewish ethics and how to apply them to journalism. We cover stories about the Jewish world for our readership, but we can also cover them in thoughtful, careful accordance with Jewish ethics. Ethical codes promulgated in mainstream media are a necessary starting point for Jewish media, but they are just that. We can and should steer our journalists to study general media ethics. But to fully serve the communities we cover, our Jewish media outlets should imbue and live the values that Jewish tradition puts forth, respects, and celebrates. Jewish media outlets do have an obligation to consider and develop our own codes of Jewish ethics as they intersect with moral dilemmas inherent in Jewish journalism. Our Jewish media outlets should also encourage our journalists who are Jewish to form their own codes of Jewish


journalism ethics; journalists who aren’t Jewish and work for Jewish media outlets should understand and conduct their journalistic work for these outlets in accordance with the full code of ethics put forward by their media outlets, which hopefully consider Jewish ethics. What we’re not saying: 1. Consideration and crafting of Jewish media ethics doesn’t necessarily have to follow halakha, or Jewish law. Just as not all Jews adhere to halakha, indoctrination of Jewish belief and adherence to Jewish law should not be the goal of Jewish media overall; halakha should already be part of the working systems of those self-defined "frum" publications within the framework of religiously observant communities and, with a careful eye not to violate general media ethics in pursuit of sustaining halakha. Whether someone accepts or does not accept religious aspects of Judaism, Judaism espouses key moral values that, at the very least, Jewish media publications should understand and seriously consider. Halakha provides excellent case studies to benefit all of us as we learn about Jewish ethics and how we might apply them to Jewish journalism. An overarching ethical dilemma of Jewish journalism is the tension between the two commandments found in Leviticus 19:16: “You shall not be a gossipmonger among your people; you shall not stand aside while your fellow’s blood is shed; I am the Lord.” We must often navigate the balance between privacy and avoidance of lashon hora and the need to provide for social justice, to repair a broken world. The ethical values don’t change, but the situations do. 2. Considering and adhering to Jewish values in journalism doesn’t mean hiding behind those values to prevent us from covering uncomfortable or controversial stories. Such values should not be used as an excuse to avoid covering stories that are painful but needed to bring about a needed change in the community, make readers aware of a current danger, and expose hypocrisy. 3. At the same time, considering and employing Jewish values in journalism does not mean using those values as a shield to overstep the importance of privacy. Though we cherish the mainstream media value of a right to know, within the purview of Jewish media ethics, the right to know is contingent upon a true need for the reader to know. Within Jewish journalism, there is no blanket right to know. There must be a good reason to disseminate information to our readers. Often there is. But we need to consider this in every case. 4. It is not an either/or situation. Working editors and journalists in Jewish media must be up to date on the latest discussions and explorations of journalism ethics in mainstream media, and continue to learn and explore Jewish ethics and how they intersect with our constantly evolving methods of gathering and disseminating news.


5. This is not easy. And it should not be. We love our communities. The health and wellness of our communities is always at stake and oftentimes, in our hands. At the end of last year’s JSPA conference, students from SAR Academy in New York said one takeaway from the Shabbaton was a phrase Marshall invoked, “ringing your kishkes out.” As in, “You never stop ringing your kishkes out over the controversial stories, even when the right path is clear.” If we check Jewish values at the door of a Jewish media outlet, why bother putting out what we claim is Jewish journalism? It’s not enough to cover news of the Jewish world using general codes of journalism ethics, as critical as they are to Western civilization. We can reach higher to imbue the values Judaism espouses.

- Marshall Weiss and Alan D. Abbey


A customized ethics code for every organization The “Build Your Own Ethics Code” project grew out of an open workshop at the Online News Association annual conference in Atlanta in October 2013, where journalists expressed a need for codes that fit the world we live in and report on, and the tools we use. Aimed at helping news organizations, small startups and individual bloggers create codes of ethics for our digital times, the project has involved the work of more than 20 journalists and journalism educators over two years. The project has also been crowdsourced for comments, bringing suggestions from all over the world. We started with the recognition that the journalism profession encompasses ever more people, philosophies and technologies. There are many definitions these days of a “journalist,” making it more important than ever for journalists to be clear about who they are and what they stand for. Our “Build Your Own Ethics Code” project recognizes that no single ethics code can reflect the needs of everyone in our widely varied profession. We believe the best hope for convincing all journalists to adopt and live by an ethics code is to give them ownership and flexibility in creating one. After laying out the fundamentals we believe should apply to all journalists (e.g. tell the truth, don’t plagiarize, promptly correct errors), this project offers a set of specific “building blocks” that let you customize the remainder of the code. Once you’ve worked through the site, you should have a comprehensive, personalized statement of how you see journalism ethics — a code that can be publicly posted and lived by. Even if you don’t create a full code from this website, we hope that looking through it will spark discussions of the most important ethical issues for your organization. We also encourage you to look beyond our building blocks to the sources we consulted in the course of this project and to the much wider range of codes throughout the world of journalism. We know that given the political and financial pressures many news organizations face — along with ethical challenges that are often difficult to anticipate — complying perfectly with any ethics code is not easy. Still, we believe it’s important to have a code as a guiding star. Even if journalists feel forced to violate their code, a code often makes it clear that they’re being asked to act contrary to their principles. In cases like this, some collective bargaining agreements recognize a “clause of conscience” that allows journalists to leave their jobs with some form of compensation if they feel their organizations’ ethical principles are being violated. Writing and posting an ethics code doesn’t solve every issue. Whatever you proclaim about your beliefs, the ultimate test remains how you behave over time and the reliability of what you report.


In whatever way you end up using this project, we hope you’ll find our work useful. We encourage you to help us continue improving this project. Thomas Kent Leader, ONA ethics code project and standards editor, The Associated Press


Journalism funded by interested organizations, donors, and foundations By Alan D. Abbey / Shalom Hartman Institute With Rachel Jaret and Steve Buttry Ethical questions:

What ethics issues arise when your news venture is created by a company or government?

How do you disclose inherent conflicts in your coverage?

How do you cover your parent organization and the issues that matter to it?

When people offer funding to your journalism organization, are you willing, or not, to reflect in your work their policies or ideology?

If so, will you insist that these policies be transparently disclosed?

If your owners or funders say they will preserve your editorial independence, do you expect them not to comment on your work? Should they attend your editorial meetings?

Jewish ethical questions:

Can a Jewish media organization retain its independence and credibility when it is owned or controlled by the community itself and which may have a different agenda?

Can Jewish values aid journalists who work for “company owned” media organizations in the exercise of such classic journalism values as being vigilant and courageous about holding those with power accountable?

Journalism funded by interested organizations Increasingly, organizations that have not traditionally been involved in journalism are launching operations that produce news, features and commentary in the same field where the business or government organization operates. For instance, a hospital corporation may create a health news service bearing its name, or a camera company may launch a news brand to write about photography. These ventures are sometimes called “content marketing” or “brand journalism.” This situation has existed in the Jewish media for decades, primarily in the form of newspapers owned or managed by Jewish community federations; it is now becoming more common outside of the Jewish community. In the non-Jewish world, these entities are new enough that their operations, structures and ethics are all evolving. One decision the company or government needs to make is whether it truly is launching a journalism operation or simply wants to practice a new form of public relations. If it’s a public relations operation, it could operate by PR ethics codes, such as the Public Relations Society of America Code of Ethics. But those trying to perform as true journalism operations should consider how to minimize and disclose the inherent conflicts.


Credibility will be a key challenge for a brand-journalism or content-marketing operation. A journalism operation with roots in a company or non-profit organization in the same field might gain credibility if it can develop an independent – or at least arm’s-length – funding relationship. Masquerading as an independent news organization will almost surely fail and damage your credibility severely when you are exposed. If your newsroom covers the field where the parent organization operates, you will eventually need to cover news that involves the funding organization. This is a good test of whether you truly are practicing journalism or PR. If you are able to independently report criticism of your parent organization and examine its performance, that’s a good indication that you’re building a journalism organization. If you go into damage control and focus primarily on reporting the viewpoint of the parent organization, you need to accept that you’re a PR organization and operate accordingly. Along with media specifically created by and for interested organizations, the economic and media business-model disruptions of the early 21st century may be leading us into what Ryan Chittum of Columbia Journalism Review called the “Billionaire Savior Phase” of the legacy media breakdown. Tech industry moguls such as Pierre Omidyar and Jeff Bezos, described by Jack Shafer as the “new Medicis funding journalism,” have been stepping in to propose new models of journalism or to “rescue” struggling or failing legacy media. Concurrently, new models of non-profit and philanthropically funded journalism have been springing up. Some have come in response to journalists’ desires to produce work to enhance the public good untainted by corporate or business-related concerns. Sometimes funding has come from public crowdsourcing. Some high-profile ventures seem to be ideologically driven in a way designed to benefit independent, aggressive journalism that will serve the public good without “fear or favor.” High-profile journalists with reputations for quality work, such as former New York Times Executive Editor Bill Keller, have joined these new ventures. Yet moguls come in all ideological stripes, and some may see media entities as a way to pursue their agendas. Their willingness to fund unprofitable ventures for the long-term or to remain hands-off in editorial matters is unknown. New funding models are raising new ethical questions that some journalists are facing for the first time. Other ethical questions resemble those commercial news operations face in trying to ensure independence from advertisers. Here are representative samples of questions you may face in coming years:

If the owners and funders of your news organization set out directly and transparently to impose their ideology on the news organization, is that OK with you?


Would you work for an organization that does not share your ideology? If you agree with the organization’s approach, is that OK? Will you mind being painted as an advocate of one approach or another?

Will you insist that the organization be transparent about its position, especially if it affects the news product and not just the editorial page? Are you willing to be personally transparent about what you stand for?

If the owners and funders say they intend to observe the traditional metaphorical wall separating editorial from business considerations, will you expect complete silence from the owner regarding the journalism you create? Will you want or encourage the owner/funder to come to editorial meetings? Suppose the funder seeks pre-publication review of your work?

The same questions arise if your work is funded by individuals through crowdsourcing. Many will consider it a given that they should be able to observe your work in progress. Should you at least have a liaison who communicates with the crowdfunders?

Here is a situation that is becoming more common in this transitional age: An individual or foundation offers funding for a specific purpose, such as coverage of hunger in Africa, the economy or technological innovation. Often such funders don’t have a strong position on the issue; they just want it covered more. But what if the funder has an agenda – even if you didn’t know it at the start? In such a case, what rules should the publication lay down about contact between the funder and the staff? What would you do if the funder learns that your story doesn’t have the “spin” desired on the subject in question and threatens to pull the funding unless the story is changed? For all of its limitations, the traditional profit-driven business model of media was a known quantity. The best media entities and journalists found ways to balance the sometimes competing needs of the business and editorial sides. Good publishers – more or less – respected and defended the separation of editorial from business decisions. A system of internal and external checks and balances existed. New models of funding may create dilemmas that are qualitatively different from those of “traditional” commercial media. In response, new media may themselves have to establish new ground rules and present them to the public in a transparent fashion. Jewish Media and Ownership - Ethical Questions Jewish media are subject to unique pressures, as many either are owned directly by local community Federations or are extremely reliant upon Federation support to cover their expenses. In such instances, while budgets may no longer pose a concern for the paper, ethical issues may surface. Privately owned papers, the independents, are also exposed to pressure from the community they serve. From social pressure to that of large advertisers, or just presenting a view that most in the community disagree with, it's always there. The crux of this issue is that the organizations and individuals who are the financial patrons of


Jewish media have the ability to impede the values that journalists strive to stand by. The journalist tries to illuminate concerns in the Jewish community, but the financial patron may want to keep these same stories in the dark. The importance of community involvement in the Jewish newspapers may be derived from various Jewish texts. Rabbi Yirmiya's statement in the Jerusalem Talmud, says that dealing with the needs of the community is as if (one is dealing with) the Torah ( צורכי ציבור כעוסק העוסק ב

Rabbi Yirmiya claims that community service should not be halted in order to .(בדברי תורהstudy Torah. In doing so, unlike what some may think, working for a community has, in his eyes, equal status to studying Torah. In Exodus 30:12-15, Moses is commanded to count the Jewish people. The method of counting used was one wherein each (male) individual above the age of 20 would offer half a shekel, which would go toward work at the Mishkan, the sanctuary. As per God's commandment, the text mentions clearly that each individual—whether rich or poor—was to give the same amount of money ( יר לא מחצית, השקל-העש יט, מ ירבה, והדל לא ימע ). Why does the text emphasize God's desire for each person, regardless of his personal wealth, to donate an equal amount? One explanation is that if each person donates an equal amount, no individual has more say than another in the matters surrounding the Mishkan. The Mishkan is a joint entity of the Jewish people, and no individual is entitled to a larger share than his neighbor. The equal donations stipulation leads us to see that in matters that affect the entire community, each member of the community should have an equal stake. Like the Mishkan, a Jewish newspaper serves the whole Jewish community. Under ideal conditions, Jewish media would belong no more to one than another. Each person would offer an equal amount, and the publication would belong to everyone. One could argue that in cities with newspapers owned by the local Federation, something like this ideal condition is theoretically fulfilled. But we also know that the Federation may not always represent its entire community and that some community members do not participate in the Federation. If serving the community is as important as learning Torah, Jewish communities may be convinced to become more involved in the newspaper, and so, divide the responsibilities among the whole of and not just part of the community. We see however that this is generally not the case. Jewish media are generally privately funded, and often by people with interests to influence the content of the paper. Unlike the commandments around the Mishkan, there are no rules prohibiting certain bodies or individuals from complete ownership of the Jewish newspapers. Albeit Jewish newspapers benefit the whole of the community, because the financial burden is not equally distributed,


some people—as God feared could happen with the Mishkan—have a greater say. What may Jewish newspapers then do? Funding by certain individuals or organizations is inevitable. The cost of a Jewish newspaper will not be split by the whole of the community as with the Mishkan, although it too benefits the whole community. Instead Jewish newspapers need to work with the patrons to create a contract that will delineate each side's responsibility. In mainstream journalism, the longstanding tradition has been of a so-called “Chinese Wall” between the ownership and the editorial side of a newspaper. Usually unwritten, such understandings can have a powerful effect on the internal culture of the news organization. Ultimately though, regardless of a news organization’s history and culture, the “Chinese Wall” is only as good as the individuals involved. In reality, the patron may nonetheless interject with little restrictions, thusly significantly limiting the journalist's freedom of speech. The journalist learns to write pieces that its patron would assent to, generally out of fear that funds will be pulled. One way to address the limitations of oral understandings may be for media to develop internal, written agreements or understandings through a process of study and learning for both ownership and editorial management. Such agreements could outline the respective responsibilities of the owner or patron and the journalists such as when and if a patron may have say in the content of the paper, and when and if the journalist is prohibited from including certain types of reports. In the case of written agreements there are likely to be fewer surprises along the way. The journalist follows a pre-established code, and the patron has voluntarily limited his rights. We may be inclined to say that it is unfair to request the journalist and newspaper patron follow such a demanding agreement, but self-imposed limits on behaviors are tied tightly to Jewish values. The Jewish halakhic and ethical system as a whole differs from other systems both at the time it was developed and in our time. From Jewish dietary restrictions, to laws around respecting ones parents, to laws of dealing with a rebellious son (ben sorer Mmoreh, BT Sanhedrin 68 b) Judaism holds itself by a different and often stricter standard imposed onto each aspect of life. This is a concept that may be applied to the modern workplace. Being Jewish often comes with taking on extra responsibilities. A Talmudic debate determines that if someone is injured in a pit dug on public property, the one who dug the pit is liable for the damage and must take responsibility (BT Baba Kama 50a). In Judaism we take additional responsibility onto ourselves, even where it may not be obvious. We may think that because the pit was dug in public property the one who dug it does not need to take responsibility, but Jewish law attributes responsibility to create a society that is fairer. So too, the Jewish journalist must take on himself an extra responsibility ensuring that his decisions, which affect the whole of the community, are preferred.


Each of the aforementioned contracts, the Chinese Wall and the written contract parallel different concepts in Judaism. The oral contract relates to the concept of Jewish ethics. A verse in Deuteronomy 6:18 commands to do the "straight (or fair) and good thing in the eyes of God" ( ית הישר והטוב, בעי ני יהוהועש ). This has been interpreted as a source for Jewish ethics, which are not always clearly outlined by halakha, but give space for the individual to consider scenarios without absolute law to confine their behavior. Jewish ethics grants both the journalist and the patron the free space to contemplate and reach conclusions alone. We are commanded not only to do as Jewish law prescribes we do, rather, to act in a way that is defined vaguely as good in the eyes of God. This gives the journalist and the patron leeway to think about cases independently. The journalist may use his own considerations to determine if a topic should be covered while being guided by Jewish ethics, or what is good. In light of the unique journalist-patron relationship, we may see the contract between the two as that of an employee-employer. The Torah in Leviticus 25:43 commands the employer to not rule the employee through rigorous labor ( רדה בו, בפרך-לא ת ). Likewise, the newspaper patron should not bind the journalist to unfair rules. We may apply the concept of "rigorous labor" to the journalist. If the patron demands he include or remove certain articles we may see this as rigorous labor inflicted on the journalist, wherein the job of the journalist is challenged by his employer, the patron. Ethical Choices Consider which of these choices fit the standards of your organization. Some of the choices below may conflict, so you should avoid choosing conflicting statements.

Our funder(s) will not be able to see our stories before publication.

Our funder(s) may see our stories before publication but may not alter content or veto publishing decisions.

Our funder(s) may see our stories before publication, and their comments on stories will be taken into account by the editorial staff.

Our funder(s) will see our stories before publication and may veto their publication.

Our funder(s) will have no say in topics to be covered or specific stories.

Our funder(s) may influence special topics to be covered but have no say in stories pursued and how they are reported and written.

Our funder(s) may influence special topics to be covered and suggest reporting and writing approaches.

Our funder(s) will not be used as sources in stories they fund.

Our funder(s) will be used as sources in stories they fund if their contributions are specifically relevant and important.

Our funder(s) will be used as sources in stories irrespective of their funding.


We will publicly disclose all funding sources.

We will publicly disclose funding sources only if they are financing specific topics or reporting.

Best Practices We recommend these as additional practices for Jewish news organizations, irrespective of your ethical choices:

Establish a clear set of rules with funder(s) at the earliest possible stages of the project’s development and publish them in a visible location on the project website or publication.

Make these policies clear to all staff in advance of their hiring.

The best way to maintain integrity is to disclose the relationship and try to build credibility by producing excellent journalism rather than PR in disguise.

Supply contact information for a staff member with authority to hear and address public concerns about real or perceived conflicts of interest arising from funding.

Explore creative approaches to achieve some measure of independence, to build credibility despite (and because of) your affiliation and to disclose conflicts and connections.

Consider creating a community-wide advisory board, volunteer options, and other such actions which open the backstage of the newspaper to more members in the community.


Jewish values regarding privacy in journalism By Marshall Weiss The Dayton Jewish Observer The balance between protection of individual privacy and alerting readers to wrongdoing in the community is the overarching Jewish ethical dilemma in journalism. We see the tension and connection between these values in two commandments as they appear side by side in the Torah: “You shall not be a gossipmonger among your people; you shall not stand aside while your fellow’s blood is shed; I am the Lord (Lev. 19:16).” The challenge to Jewish journalism outlets is to navigate to the “just fulcrum” between careful prevention of lashon hora (literally evil tongue) – which can destroy the reputation of an individual – and the need to alert readers to dangers and injustices in their midst. Alerting the community to danger – even at the expense of the perpetrator’s reputation – is justified in Jewish tradition. But what if it’s not danger? What if it’s an injustice? What if it’s not an injustice but hypocrisy? And what if there’s uncertainty about exactly what took place? Scenarios that play out in our communities are rarely black and white. Each situation requires careful judgment of the facts that are known, an understanding of what elements remain unknown, and an awareness of the potential ramifications for the accused. Championing Jewish values in journalism doesn’t mean hiding behind prohibitions against lashon hora. This kind of rationalization would give us cover to avoid writing stories that are painful but necessary: to right injustices in the community, make readers aware of a current danger, and expose hypocrisies among leaders. At the same time, the Jewish value to expose wrongdoing is not an automatic shield to overstep an individual’s privacy — even in cases when the individual is a public figure. Within Jewish media ethics, the right to know – and how much to know – are contingent on a true need for the reader to know. Rabbi Joseph Telushkin, in his book, Words That Hurt, Worlds That Heal, writes, “Beyond criminal abrogations of duty such as embezzling funds or the like, the chief offense for which public officials deserve to be called to account is hypocrisy; for example, does the person engage in conduct he denounces or wishes to see punished in others? Even here, however, caution is advised.” He continues, “In short, public figures should not be exempt from the right to privacy that we all enjoy. Except for those aspects of their lives that relate to job performance, they should be able to keep their private lives private.” Navigating these values as they intersect isn’t easy. And it shouldn’t be. We love our communities. The health and wellness of our communities is at stake and oftentimes, in our hands. But navigate them we must.


In the June 2005 issue of Sh’ma, New York Jewish Week Editor and Publisher Gary Rosenblatt expressed this dilemma eloquently: “Knowing that one’s words are powerful and can do damage does not mean we can ignore reporting on wrongdoing, but rather that we must be particularly careful with our facts and mindful that the stakes are high. If the circumstances are important enough, we are obligated to take a stand, speak out, and help correct an injustice.” It is up to us to carefully weigh, in each case, if the circumstances are important enough.


Community Activities By Maayan Jaffe Israel Democracy Institute JCommerce Group Freelance Writer Based on the BYO “community activities” section (http://ethics.journalists.org/q/community-activities/). The main author of that section was Steve Buttry of Louisiana State University.

1. How, if at all, should a news organization restrict staff members’ involvement in

community activities? 2. When a staff member’s community activities relate to stories that person might cover,

should you assign those stories to other staff members? 3. When a staff member’s community activities relate to stories that person covers, should

you disclose the connection? 4. Is it acceptable for staff members to handle publicity for a community group?

In Judaism there is a concept called nogea b'dvar, conflict of interest. In Jewish literature, this term is generally referred to with regards to the Beit Din. A judge will normally excuse himself from being the arbiter of a case for which he is nogea b'dvar. We learn:

או שהוא , או שיש לו טובת הנאה מהנדון, אדם אינו יכול לדון או להעיד במשפט אם הוא קרוב משפחה .אוהב או שונא את אחד מבעלי הדין

A person cannot judge or serve as a witness if he is a member of one's immediate family, if he has something to gain from the judgement or if he loves or hates the person being judged. How does this apply to Jewish media? The majority of our Jewish newspapers have a small team of local Jewish staff writers and editors, which means they live in and often raise their children in the communities about which they are writing. The stories they write can impact their lives in the present and future. Prof. Motti Neiger, dean of the school of communications at Netanya Academic College, says that in 2015 there is little objective journalism – if there ever was. "Journalism is rooted in culture and society. When journalists cover a society or culture that they are involved with, that inherently removes a level of objectivity. The reporter cannot help but bring his own opinion, culture, societal point of view to the story," Neiger says. "You cannot see the full picture if you are part of it."

http://ethics.journalists.org/q/community-activities/

http://ethics.journalists.org/q/community-activities/


Although Neiger says he does not believe that all journalism is biased, he says that reporters are faced with a fundamental ethical dilemma. On the one hand, they are required to provide balanced coverage – as much as possible. On the other hand, the reporter's nation, society, or religion calls upon him to provide coverage that "could serve as a tool in the battle of images." Consider the following scenarios:

A) Martha is the editor of a Federation-owned Jewish newspaper. She learns of a challenge at the Federation through one of her friends at the organization. She knows that if she chooses to write about the dispute, the situation will likely be handled for the better of the community. She also knows that the person involved at the Federation will trace the story back to her friend and she does not want to harm her friendship. Also, the Federation pays Martha's paycheck… Should she write the story or pretend she doesn’t know about it?

B) Several Jewish day schools compete in a high school basketball tournament. Matt's

son's Jewish day school makes it to the final game and then loses in overtime – he believes unfairly – to another day school team. The winning school wants a large photo of the win in the community section. As the community editor, Matt decides what gets in. There are many competing priorities. When he receives the photo and cutline in his email, he is admittedly still bitter. Does he put the picture in the paper?

C) Chana is a member of the Chabad community. She is also the editor of the local Jewish

paper. Her personal agenda is to help as many local Jews as possible recognize the beauty of Judaism. She tends to infuse a lot of positive Orthodox stories in the paper. She says they are just good articles. True?

Some papers may want to restrict or encourage staff members’ involvement in community activities. Others opt to allow greater independence. Independence v. Involvement Most news organizations that value independence don’t heavily limit staff members’ involvement in community life (outside politics), but use a mix of assignments, disclosure, and common sense to address potential conflicts. For instance, news organizations don’t restrict journalists’ involvement with their children’s sports teams and other activities, but probably wouldn’t allow a parent to cover his or her children’s team. Your education reporter may encounter conflicts if he or she has children, because the children’s school is bound to pop up in the news occasionally. You can handle that either by assigning those stories to another reporter or by disclosing in a story that the reporter’s child goes to the school in question. Similarly, a religion reporter might need to pass a story to a colleague (or disclose affiliation in a story) if a story involves the congregation to which the reporter belongs. Most traditional news organizations provide coverage of community fund


drives such as United Way, while still participating as an organization and encouraging employees to contribute. If your organization favors involvement, you may still want staff members to disclose involvements to supervisors and, in relevant stories, to the public. Publicity While many independent newsrooms don’t limit journalists’ involvement in such community activities as religious organizations, schools, sports, and charities, some bar staff members from being responsible for publicity in any organization. In other words, you may be able to direct the community theater play or star in it, or run the spotlight. But you can’t volunteer to be the one that asks your news organization to run a feature story, photo, video, or review promoting the play. Disclosures Some journalists, including independent bloggers, use disclosures to help readers/viewers understand their experience, expertise and bias. You might consider a detailed disclosure in the “About Us” page on your site and consider whether specific stories merit brief disclosures about the involvement relating to that story. For instance, a stay-at-home mother who’s blogging about parenting issues in her community might have an “About” page disclosure telling the ages and genders of her children and the community activities that she and the children are involved in. And a Q&A with one of the children’s music teachers about how to foster young children’s interest in music should disclose that the teacher is giving piano lessons to the blogger’s child. As with anything in Judaism, there are stricter and less strict opinions about when and how to deal with someone being nogea b'dvar. Moving back to the scenario of the judge, according to the Mishna (the strictest opinion) if a judge is from the same city as the person being judged, he should not pass judgment. Over time Jewish decision makers have lightened their positions on nogea b'dvar. For instance, we later learn:

.) ז"ל'. מ סי"י חו"ב)כשר -פ שאפשר שיהנה בו להבא "אע, כל שאינו נוגע עכשיו בעדות: ואמרו And they say: Anyone who is not currently going to benefit from passing judgement, even if he might in the future – it is OK for him to serve as judge (Beit Yosef). More sources re: Nogea b'dvar: http://www.daat.ac.il/encyclopedia/value.asp?id1=2336

http://www.daat.ac.il/encyclopedia/value.asp?id1=2336


Consider which of these choices fit the standards of your organization. Some of the choices below may conflict, so you should avoid choosing conflicting statements. Some may be copied into the box below and edited to address or eliminate the conflict. This section taken directly from "Community activities – Ethical choices" - http://ethics.journalists.org/q/community-activities-ethical-choices/

Our journalists should avoid community involvement.

Our journalists should avoid community involvement in areas that they cover. Journalists should tell their supervisors about their community involvements, including when a story suddenly arises that may present a conflict. When they have to cover an area where they have a personal involvement, we should consider assigning another journalist. If a conflict can’t be avoided, coverage should disclose the conflict.

Our journalists may not serve in publicity roles for community organizations.

Our journalists should disclose community involvements, particularly those involving topics they might cover, both in general statements we will publish on our website and in stories relating to their involvements.

Our journalists are encouraged to be involved in the community and the issues we cover, but we will disclose these involvements in our coverage.

We will provide factual coverage in a neutral voice despite our organization’s involvement in the issues we cover. We will disclose our affiliation for transparency reasons, but the affiliation should not be evident from a promotional voice or content.

Community Activities – Best Practices We recommend these as additional practices for all news organizations, irrespective of your ethical choices:

Our journalists will tell their supervisor even about routine things that may never present a conflict, such as what synagogue they belong to or where they send their children to school.

Our journalists will ask a trusted friend without connections to read, listen to or view a story before publication to provide feedback in cases when those journalists have strong connections to a story.

Our journalists will inform their editor about any community involvements so that the editor can make objective decisions about who should write which stories to avoid, as much as possible, that our journalists will be directly involved with the sources or organization that are the focus of a piece.

Our journalists will not interview nuclear or extended family members for articles, without full disclosure.

Our paper will run a statement on its website and/or masthead that indicates we do our best to provide balanced, objective coverage of the community, but recognize that the nature of local Jewish journalism is to be "nogea b'dvar."

http://ethics.journalists.org/q/community-activities-ethical-choices/

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