UW Center for Journalism Ethics
We encourage the highest standards in journalism by fostering vigorous debate, providing resources to journalists
and news consumers, and honoring the best in ethical journalistic practice.
News
The plastic surgery paradox: Balancing coverage by emphasizing health over beauty
For media ethicists, the intense scrutiny of individual celebrities’ faces and bodies can run afoul of the journalistic imperative to minimize harm. And yet, if coverage strips away the intense medical and financial realities of these surgeries and replaces them with aspiration for a celebrity-like perfection, the procedures can become glamorized.
The case for care-based journalism
Journalism as an institution has not paused to ponder whether a framework built to manage relationships with the powerful is appropriate for relationships with the powerless.
“Lead with listening”: The solidarity-approach to reporting on homelessness
With homelessness on the rise, more journalists will be tasked with finding ethical ways of covering this community and the host of issues they face.
‘Transparency is key’: Inside the investigation that revealed abuse and neglect in California mental health facilities
Cynthia Dizikes and Joaquin Palomino spoke with The Center about the ethical decisions behind their reporting, how they built trust with grieving families and what it means to investigate trauma responsibly.