The NY Times has written about their policies for journalists and editors covering impartiality and politics. It is pretty good even though it is laughable that out of all news outlets it is the NY Times pretending to be impartial on anything.
One key area that perhaps the bosses at Red Radio might like to insist on is that “newsroom staff members may not participate in political advocacy, like volunteering for candidates’ campaigns or making contributions”. Though if they did follow that, their news bulletins might be a bit thin.
As New York Times employees, we are required to extend this self-scrutiny beyond our work, to the places where our personal and public lives intersect. Newsroom staff members may not participate in political advocacy, like volunteering for candidates’ campaigns or making contributions.
“And, by extension, we ask them to be very careful and mindful about other contributions and donations they make and volunteer work they do,” Philip B. Corbett, The Times’s standards editor, explains.
We should not wear campaign buttons or display any other insignia of partisan politics, such as bumper stickers or lawn signs. Nor may we serve on government boards or run for public office.
This goes for reporters, editors, photographers, artists, designers, researchers and other staff members in every news department of The Times, not just for those who cover politics.
Stuff too would be shot all to hell over those rules, especially their editor Patrick Crewdson with his advocacy for climate change issues. If only they could rise to the “standards” that the NY Times professes to adhere to.
Next is a piece of advice for Guyon Espiner, Matt Shand, Katie Bradford and Patrick Gower from White House correspondent Peter Baker:
As reporters, our job is to observe, not participate, and so to that end, I don’t belong to any political party, I don’t belong to any non-journalism organization, I don’t support any candidate, I don’t give money to interest groups and I don’t vote.
I try hard not to take strong positions on public issues even in private, much to the frustration of friends and family. For me, it’s easier to stay out of the fray if I never make up my mind, even in the privacy of the kitchen or the voting booth, that one candidate is better than another, that one side is right and the other wrong.
NY Times
I wonder how many of New Zealand’s news outlets have such a policy? Personally I’d prefer they didn’t pretend that they were impartial and just wore their colours proudly. That way we’d all know exactly where they stand.
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