Ethics and New Media

How the Blogosphere is Impacting Journalism and Business

The Atlanta Press Club hosted a panel discussion on March 27 at the Commerce Club Thursday evening to converse about the ethical standards of blogging and how it just may be redefining journalism. Panel members consisted of Lea Donosky, interactivity manager at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Jeremy C. Garlington, managing partner at Point of View, LLC, Dr. Gregory C. Lisby, professor at Georgia State University, and David Rubinger, VP of corporate communications at Equifax Inc. Dr. John C. Knapp, professor and director for the Center for Ethics and Corporate Responsibility, moderated the discussion between panel members and attendees.

Dialogue centered around three general questions--which in turn, led to even more unanswered questions. The first question, how new media is redefining journalism and where it is headed in the future, allowed panel members to state their position on the blogosphere.

Before the Web, it wasn’t important to nail down ‘who was a journalist’ and it shouldn’t be now, said Donosky. Garlington admitted to having a real problem with the word ‘blogger,’ although he does feel that blogs address a real need, a “deeper knowledge and understanding of confusing topics.” Lisby commented about needing to recognize the 1st Amendment, which could be a means of ending this public debate. He feels it is personally difficult to try and define a journalist, because that would limit the 1st Amendment. Rubinger talked about the beginnings of his career at the Atlanta Business Chronicle, where he and others weren't considered credible because they weren’t a daily publication. It took a few breaking stories to gain respect. This reflects how Rubinger feels today about bloggers. They don’t need to be ignored, they do great work and are a part of the process.

As for how blogging has changed the business relationships with the media, panel members all agreed that businesses have adapted quite well to blogs and the increased degree of responsibility of working with them--or at least in a world where they exist. As for Rubinger, blogs have very much changed communication mechanisms at Equifax. Businesses want to be able to control everything said about them and blogs are the 180-degree opposite. Lisby agreed, saying it is the advantage of the Web that shifts from one-way communication to two-way.

Panel members were asked how to establish trust in the blogging environment, or how to know when a blogger's information they are presenting is indeed, true. Donosky said it may not be possible. We may have to give up that thought, and find other outlets of truth, such as social networks. Garlington compared gaining audience trust as easy as labeling something with a tag. Rubinger said trust has to be set by the community itself, not by government standards. “Truth telling creates trust and trust creates community, which creates journalism,” said Lisby.

This exchange of ideas regarding the blogosphere brought forth many similar and differing opinions. Although no one was able to nail down any concrete conclusions on the ethical standards for blogging, there were enough viewpoints put out there to conclude that the blogosphere undeniably has an impact on journalism and business.