Media City.

In a week that involved a trip to Media City in Manchester, the practices and principles of Journalism have taken more of a back seat to trips out and analysis of these very blogs.

Monday started with a critical appraisal of our blogs so far, from the 'good' to the 'passable' to the 'ridiculous'. Quoting works of authors and journalists seems to be the order of the day, and to make a blog that would provide an analytical appraisal of our work will require a number of different sources that back up or prove our points, which ultimately would contribute towards 1000 words that will be part of our end of semester marking for Practices and Principles.

Whereas last week we had a Thursday lecture with Nick in which we were out and about in the City Vox Popping people for their opinions, this week was a more academic drone on the ethical code of practice for Journalists, interesting yes, informative yes, but a drone still nonetheless. Journalists must

"strive to serve the public with thoroughness and honesty". [1]

The fact that "Professional integrity is the cornerstone of a journalist's credibility"[1] is vitally important as is the idea that "members of the Society of Journalists share a dedication to ethical behaviour and adopt the code to declare the Society's principles and standards of practice."[1]

To be able to learn early on the codes and principles of Journalism that we have to adhere to is useful, as is the fact that we can now put the principles into practice the next time we write, interview or undertake any piece of journalism. To be able to practice now in an environment that is somewhat guarded is a very valuable feature of University life, and will allow us to adhere to the code to the letter when we are writing in the 'real world'. It may have not been the most stimulating of lectures, but surely its principles will have real world meanings for us soon enough.
 

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[1] SPJ Code of Ethics | Society of Professional Journalists | Improving and protecting journalism since 1909

In-text: (Spj.org, 2013)

Bibliography: Spj.org. 2013. SPJ Code of Ethics | Society of Professional Journalists | Improving and protecting journalism since 1909. [online] Available at: http://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp [Accessed: 24 Oct 2013].