PressEthic

In pursuit of a story there are certain ethical standards most journalists are aware of that should not be breached. Breaking the law is perhaps the most conspicuous of those caveats. The issue here, however, is several nuances away from, say, a journalist posing as a police officer to get the scoop.

The Schwarzenegger administration stated the area of their website that contained the audio files transcripted in the Los Angeles Times was password protected. The campgaign manager for Democratic gubernatorial challenger Phil Angelides admits that an emailed press release from the governor's office last month was the portal used to access those files. A link within the press release was clicked on, and after using the browser to backspace, the user was allowed access to the audio files.

So, as a journalist made aware of these files, was the question asked how they were obtained? Does it matter that someone else may have broken the law and the content, second-hand, is now journalistic fair game? The comments were what could be considered classic Schwarzenegger, construed as sexist by some and dismissive by others. Although the Democratic campaign manager insists the files were released without her permission by members of her staff, she maintains that they were publicly accessible. Perhaps because it could be done, it could have been done by anybody. Not everybody in the public, however, received the emailed press release.

Regarding the journalists who broke the piece, it can be assumed they were contacted by the staffers and perhaps felt pressured that if they didn't go with the story someone else would. Being first, or being right, ethically, is a tough call to make from the margins of the paper. I wasn't there. I did't have their editors. I don't have their job. But, perhaps, as these issues are raised and discussed, the possibility of not having their job after making those kinds of decisions will set the standard for others.