Ethics Blog

Trouble in City Hall

Written By: Asia Preston
October 29, 2013
To blow the whistle or not? That is the question.
Rumors are circulating that George Smith, the citys chief financial officer is under
investigation for embezzling thousands of tax-payer dollars. The mayors secretary,
Sherrie Betts, has sent security footage to several media outlets which clearly shows
George Smith admitting guilt to the mayor and making promises to replace the funds.
Betts has asked that the journalists do nothing with the video until she contacts them,
but with a deadline fast approaching the pressure is on to be the first to break the
story.
The ethical issue in this situation is whether the journalist should honor the request of
the source or inform the public of the CFOs wrongdoing.
Internal factors which influence the journalists decision are the obligations he or she
has to the media outlet and the source. The external factors which influence the
journalists decision are the obligations to the public, most importantly the publics
right to know.
All four of the key values written in the Society of Professional Journalists Code of
Ethics are applicable in this situation. Journalists are responsible, according to the
code, to seek truth and report it, minimize harm, act independently, and be
responsible.
The parties impacted by this situation include the media outlet, the public, and the
Mayors office. The media outlet itself will be affected because competitors also have
access to the video and an outlet could face scrutiny if the other outlets decide to
release the information and it does not. The public also will be impacted if the
information is released because the embezzled funds were city funds. The mayors
office, especially the CFO, mayor and secretary will be impacted by the journalists
decision. The secretary will also be affected because she is the source who provided
the security footage and the CFO because he is shown admitting to the crime. The
mayor would be scrutinized for how effectively he handled the situation after Smiths
confession.
The most responsible decision for a journalist to make in this situation is to release
the information only after allowing George Smith to respond. Doing so follows
Aristotles Golden Mean which is finding the desirable middle between two
extremes. Allowing Smith to respond also follows the SPJs code of ethics because
the reporter is reporting the truth and attempting to minimize harm.
The journalist who follows this route may not be the first to release the
information, but he or she will likely have the most accurate and ethical presentation
of the story.