Behind the Scenes: Adhering to a code of ethics

I’m always happy to give our tip provider suggestions on ways they can still get This Story into the newspaper if applicable — maybe it’s a letter to the editor or an event listing. Or maybe it’s just a matter of the person sending in a press release and a photo.

Those are easy solutions that are easy to explain. People get it — they understand it may be a matter of reporter-power that keeps us from covering This Story. Or what qualifies as an ad versus article, and what kinds of press releases we accept.

But sometimes people are (really) upset when we haven’t covered, or have declined to cover, a story.

And that can be a little harder to explain, mostly because the person doesn’t want to hear the reasoning behind our decision.

Much like our letters to the editor policy, there are guidelines we follow when it comes to the stories we cover. I can sum it up in one word: Ethics.

But given that I am a writer, of course I’ve got more words than one.

Professional journalists adhere to a code of ethics, valuing truth, accuracy, objectivity, impartiality, fairness and public accountability. We have a responsibility to minimize harm when covering a story — i.e., weighing the public’s right to know against the invasion of privacy, for example — and use only legitimate sources.

(That last one is also why it can take a while to get some stories ready for publication — we can’t just take your word for it, or report on a rumor going around, or get our information from an anonymous email. And it takes time to do it right.)

We deal in facts, not speculation. Not feelings. Not biases.

It’s why we don’t report on individual business complaints, cover suicides, or publish the names of victims of crimes. It’s why we don’t describe graphic scenes (Mark Gibson, our longtime editor, always said if you wouldn’t run a photo, you shouldn’t write about it). It’s why we get things on the record and through the proper channels. It’s why we print what’s true instead of what someone wants to hear.

Yes, we cover crime and use names — because we’ve gotten the information from the appropriate channels — and work under the assumption that everyone is innocent until proven guilty. Yes, we cover politics — kind of hard not to — and board meetings, because the public has a right to know what their elected representatives are doing. And yes, we print letters to the editor on all sorts of topics, provided they follow our guidelines, because that’s part of the democratic process.

Our job is to report the facts. The reader’s job is to reach their own conclusions.

And it’s true, that kind of reporting likely won’t provide the clicks or social media shares that a sensationalized news story might, but we sleep better knowing we followed the journalism ethic guidelines, taking extra time to make sure the story is fair and accurate with minimal harm.

Which brings me to one last point: If we make an error (because of course we do, we’re human), we make sure to correct it, both online and in print. There’s no shame in admitting we got it wrong — though there would be if we failed to correct it.

We are the newspaper of record for two counties in the Columbia River Gorge. And we take that seriously.