PressEthic

Is it unethical for a journalist to become involved with the events that he or she covers? Does this threaten the core of objectivity that journalists are charged with delivering to the public? Or is it, in some instances, a natural outgrowth of their work?

According to a New York Times article, Barbara Ehrenreich, an acclaimed journalist and author of “Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America” and “Bait and Switch: The (Futile) Pursuit of the American Dream”:

“has started an organization called United Professionals to help white collar workers, be they unemployed, uninsured, downsized, stressed out or merely anxious.”

Ehrenreich was uniquely familiar with the stresses of unemployed white-collar workers, after posing as one to gather information for her book “Bait and Switch.”

Yet did Ehrenreich (known for her liberal bias and activist style of journalism) cross the line by creating an organization to assist the same people she wrote about?

I don’t think so. I think she just seized an opportunity to do something about a problem she believed needed fixing.