Analysis of Food Journalism - Essay Example

Analysis of Food Journalism Introduction Food Journalism is becoming one of the most prominent aspects of journalism nowadays and newspapers and magazines are having dedicated writers and journalists to write on the subject. Historically it has not been seen as a serious discipline and it has only recently emerged that the food journalism has became a norm within the journalism as a serious discipline. However, it is also important to note that food journalism may face critical ethical situations where it may become difficult to clearly demarcate the line between ethics and self interest. It is generally argued that the food journalism bring into attention some of the issues which may be intense issues for the media itself and the consumers also. Since it directly questions the production process of food as well as the technology which is used to produce such foods besides discussing other important issues, food journalism often makes consumer choices more wider and provide them good understanding of how to make good and well informed choices.(Lumby & Probyn, 2003). The situation provided in the case study requires a clear understanding of the ethical practices that food journalist must adapt and the roles and responsibilities of the journalists as well as the persons/businesses that have been highlighted as the violators of the law. Journalists are often assumed to go far to the stretch to a point where they have the legal cover and freedom to do. Thus it is important that journalists must understand the ethical consequences of their actions and reporting on various issues. Editors Code of Practice Before discussing the case, it is important that a general overview of the code of practice is presented so that a broader picture can be constructed to understand the practical situation provided in the given case study. One of the most important aspects of the code is the maintenance of the highest level of professionalism and requires that journalist must present only such information which is accurate and can be verifiable. What is also significant to note that the code further allows that if a journalist makes incorrect statement, it becomes the ethical responsibility of the journalist to either correct the information presented with opportunity to reply.1 Considering the situation provided in the case study, it is important that one must first become certain that the story published against the Thai Restaurant owner is correct and not an act of revenge and vandalism. The owner of the Restaurant therefore can first argue against the accuracy of the information presented by the Journalist and can also come up with an alternative evidence. There are also other important ethical responsibilities of the journalist and organizations such as exercise of fairness in treating individuals in programs etc. Further, the code also restricts the journalists not to obtain any evidence by using deception as a tool to obtain the News and use it for the intended purposes. Having discussed some of the important ethical responsibilities of the journalist under the Editor’s code of practices, next section will discuss the situation provided in the case study. Owners’ Right to Privacy The Privacy clause of the code of ethics indicates following: 1. Everyone has the right to respect for himself, family life, health, home etc and editors shall not any such thing without the approval of the persons. 2. Further, no one is allowed to be photographed in private places without the prior consent of the individual. The above two clauses therefore indicate that Restaurant Owner may claim under these clause that his picture was taken without his consent and the Journalist may have exercise imprudence and violated the code of ethics while photographing him. It is however important to note that the code also allows some exceptions to the above situation specially if something is reported in the Public interest. Protecting the public health and safety is one of the areas which falls under the protection of the public interest and the Newspaper under this exemption may get away with this ethical violation. This is because of the fact that the food produced by the Restaurant was unhygienic. What is also interesting to note that the probe for selling unhygienic food is still under way and it may be premature on the part of the Newspaper to declare the food as unhygienic? According to McNae, the benefit of defence to the journalist may only be available against the violation of human rights act etc is therefore deeply rooted into the compliance and adherence with the code of ethics outlined in the various codes. Further, there are many case studies where courts have given split verdicts i.e. in some cases courts gave favorable decisions for Journalists in terms of right to privacy and freedom of expression whereas in some cases courts ruled against Journalist. In case of Naomi Campbell wherein Daily Mirror published the story of her drug addictions and the treatments she was getting, House of Lords established the principle of “unjustified disclosure of private information. (McNae, 2007). Considering this situation, Thai Restaurant may plead that his privacy was unjustifiably disclosed by the paper and without first making any credible investigation regarding the true and fair nature of the allegations leveled against the Restaurant. Conclusion PCC’s Editors code of Practices outlines the ethical responsibilities and duties of the editors while reporting on any issue. Maintenance of individual privacy is one of the essential ethical requirements for the editors and any violation of the same may result into trouble for the Newspapers. The code however, gives exceptions to the situation where public interest is involved therefore Editors may be able to save themselves against any charges leveled by Thai Restaurant owner. What is also however, interesting to note that courts on various occasions have given verdicts for unjustified violation of privacy of the individuals? Based on the precedent set by the House of Lords in case of Naomi Campbell vs The Daily Mirror, Thai Restaurant may take plea against the Newspaper for unjustified disclosure of his privacy and can claim damages. References 1. Lumby, Catherine & Probyn, Elspeth, Remote Control : New Media, New ethics, Cambridge University Press, 2003 2. Welsh, Tom, Greenwood, Walter & Banks, David. McNae's essential law for journalists, Oxford University Press, 2007 Read More