Bloggers need awareness of law, ethics
We’re working on a new digital project at Sunderland that will give our students a great outlet to develop their skills online. One of the key issues we’re coming up against, of course, is the liability that we as a journalism department may have as publishers of student work.
A practical benefit of the new digital platform will be to show students, in practice, the requirement of an understanding of media law if they really, really want to work in media. But such an understanding, according to the latest research from global legal services organisation, DLA Piper, is significantly lacking from current internet users and publishers. The research illustrates that:
Only 5% of internet users are clear on their legal rights and responsibilities when posting comment online. Those who have posted a comment on the internet are unsure about their legal liabilities with over three quarters (77%) of bloggers uncertain or unaware of where the law stands. Net Imperative, 14 May 2008.
This lack of clarity on the behalf of bloggers and those posting user-generated content leaves publishers–the big brands and the small, individual publication publisher–on potentially dangerous ground. And it’s made people nervious. As illustrated by some recent research by Sue Robinson, published in the academic journal Journalism Practice, most major newspapers and media publishers across America were:
by mid-2006, [limiting] their reader commentary or explicitly moderated discussions. NYTimes.com was forced to close down many of its online message boards, which ‘‘turned out to be sewers of profanity’’. Journalism Practice, 2007, 1:3, 305 - 321
And if the US editors, who operate in a less restrictive and litigious media culture than we in the UK, are culling free comment and immediate posting, then what should we do? Which is why, at Sunderland, we are proceeding with a process-led, cautious approach to training and supporting our students.
It is perhaps one of the reasons why more university departments, as opposed to student unions (referenced by Andy Atkinson at Central Lancs), are not progressing down the same path. Having said that, though, we’re not the first, and Rob Steen’s reflection on the process only makes me feel more positive that we’ll get this thing launched. (If one of our students can do it, and do it well, then we can’t let him show us up!)
One of the interesting results of the DLA Piper survey, carried out by YouGov, is that:
Less than half (42%) of all internet users think bloggers should be held to the same legal standards as journalists when publishing opinions, but of those who actually blog themselves only a quarter (27%) believe they should be subjected to the same rules. Net Imperative, 14 May 2008.
As the research goes on to show, internet users remain to be convinced as to whether or not bloggers should sign up to a code of conduct:
Nearly half (46%) agree that a code should be established, 15% are unsure and only 4% are firmly opposed. Opinion is even divided amongst bloggers themselves, with over a third (34%) directly opposed to a code of conduct, but about the same number (32%) in support of it. Net Imperative, 14 May 2008.
A code of ethics for bloggers (whether they be journalists or non-journalists) has been debated for a while now, from the very upper echelons of the digital pubishing world (e.g. O’Reilly). The O’Reilly Wikia project, for collaboratively editing a blogger code of conduct, is an interesting project, and important to know. As is the Cyberjournalist.net boiler-plate code that can be adapted for use.
A voluntary student ‘honour-code’ that emerged out of the University of Nevada, Reno, is perhaps a very American approach that is not quite right for us, not least in the light of the ’student contract’ debate.
Bloggers and internet users do need to know their legal responsibilities. Those benefitting from the low-entry costs to publishing, individuals or organisations such as academic institutions, should have in place rigorous policies, training procedures, codes of conduct, and terms and conditions that mean that a high standard of fairness and ethical behaviour are practiced. Because in the end, I feel, laws are there not to punish us for doing wrong but to instruct us in how to act fairly and ethically towards others. Something all journalists should practice.
So what next for us? We’re putting in place a robust level of training, support, crisis management, cease and desist, transparent editorial policy, etc, so that if our project does go ahead, then if the worst were to happen, we would have a strong defence. We already are publishers of print projects: twice a year, one of our student groups produces and publishes The Wear, a student-focused newspaper. So the precedent is set. And this is, I feel, such a fantastic and necessary opportunity for our students that I’ve no doubt the pros will outweigh all the risks in the long term.
Because if we can put together a teaching and training tool for our journalism programmes to rival what is going on both within students unions, on Facebook and American colleges (and we are competing globally for student attention) then we at Sunderland will be well ahead of the game in preparing our students for the digital future.
Has blogging changed journalism? Paul Bradshaw at Birmingham City is conducting a survey please pass it on.
*Images from Flickr under the Creative Commons licence, just so you know 
