 National Association of Counties * Washington, D.C. Vol. 31, No. 5 * March 15, 1999 Previous story | Table of Contents | Next story In Monica's wake: Is privacy dead for county officials? By Victoria Vickers
Is there anything the American public doesn’t know about its president after the Lewinsky scandal? And, although they play to a much smaller audience, local elected officials face a similar scrutiny. Consequently, seeking public support to do a job on behalf of a community means giving up a certain level of privacy. "What they do in private is fodder for public discourse, and by becoming a subject to be discussed by the public you automatically get the press involved," says Steve Geimann, managing editor of Communications Daily, and former president of the Society of Professional Journalists. The journalists’ code of ethics doesn’t change as it relates to elected officials. Just as a journalist is charged with the duty to seek the truth and report it, a public official must be held accountable to the public by whom he or she was elected, Geimann says. To help county officials with this issue, NACo distributes its County Officials Code of Ethics (www.naco.org/counties/ethics.cfm) to public and elected officials as a reminder of the responsibilities that are embedded in the oath of office. According to Bill Canary, commentator and political analyst, WHOA-TV, Montgomery, Ala., establishing a national news council is the best solution to restoring goodwill among local government officials and journalists. Most recently advocated by CBS journalist Mike Wallace, the national news council would be patterned after Minnesota’s News Council, which has been hearing public complaints about the media for more than 29 years. Twenty to 25 percent of the complaints handled by the council are from local government officials, says Leslie MacKenzie, the council’s Web master. Although the council has no power to sanction unethical journalists, they succeed by empowering the public to hold the media accountable. The council is comprised of journalists as well as business executives, professors, lawyers, retired citizens, teachers and county officials. The council’s mission is to educate the public on the role of the media, while reintroducing journalists to the many layers of ethical questions. The council accepts complaints on all levels. Once a complaint is filed, the editor or news director of the news organization in question is notified by mail of the request for a hearing. A decision is made by the council even if the news organization does not appear for the hearing. The council also posts the complaint on its Web site (www.mtn.org/newscouncil/) and publishes it in its newsletter, which has a distribution of 5,000. One of the more obvious signs of the council’s success came from a Minnesota television station that was less than pleased with the council’s scrutiny of its sensational coverage of an incident involving an airline. MacKenzie said that she later saw an ad in a local newspaper from that same station who was in search of "a careful reporter." Geimann, who testified before Congress on the case of wrongly accused bombing suspect Richard Jewel of Atlanta, GA., admits "We blew it big time …" He recommends that county officials challenge problematic reporters by handing them a copy of the journalists’ code of ethics, followed by this verbal reminder: "Those who are responsible and professional, who work as journalists in this country, have a belief in a set of principles and this is what they follow." Canary, once a local official himself, offers similar advice to county officials. "We might not be able to fix [the problem] with our current political generation … but let’s [write] policy, let’s work it through, let’s make it happen, let’s make [journalists] accountable." For information on how to establish a news council in your county, contact the Minnesota News Council, 12 S. Sixth St., Suite 1122, Minneapolis, MN 55402; phone: 612/341-9357; fax: 612/341-9358. Copies of the journalists’ code of ethics are available from the Society of Professional Journalists by calling the Ethics Hotline at 765/653-2070. Copies of NACo’s Code of Ethics for County Officials is available by calling NACo at 202/942-4249, or can be downloaded from NACo’s Web site at www.naco.org/counties/ethics.cfm. The duty of the journalist is to seek the truth and provide a fair and comprehensive account of events and issues. Conscientious journalists from all media and specialties strive to serve the public with thoroughness and honesty. Journalists and members of the society who are dedicated to ethical behavior adopt the following code of ethics: Journalists should be honest, fair and courageous in gathering, reporting and interpreting information. Ethical journalists should treat sources, subjects and colleagues as human beings deserving of respect. Journalists should be free of obligation to any interest other than the public’s right to know. Journalists are accountable to their readers, listeners, viewers and each other. |
