This January 5, which will be celebrated as Journalists’ Day, we need to think more than ever about the way we report, the level of commitment we have and the challenges we already face. Journalism is necessary for democracy and peace in society, and as journalists we cannot renounce its essence.

Under this premise, I allow myself to make some notes on journalistic ethics, which collect ideas that I have long exchanged with students, friends and colleagues:

There were 262 attacks on freedom of expression in 2023, according to Fundamedios

1. Defense strategy – quite bad – when mistakes are made in journalistic practice, others are blamed for decisions made or actions committed. In an effort to justify them, they sell them with phrases taken from romance novels or good-guy-vs-bad-guy movies: “I thought that’s what they wanted,” “I do what they tell me,” “I had no choice but to do it.” , “He is my enemy.” , I had to defend you (or defend myself)… In journalism, these forms of justification are not acceptable. Those who choose this activity know (we know, and so do I) that it is not professional or ethical to leave responsibility to others for what we cannot, do not want or are ashamed to admit, in whole or in part.

2. It is not easy to accept a mistake. It’s even harder to post a correction or apologize. Not because of lack of will or vanity, but because of shame to publicly say that we failed in some information, in comparison, in interpretation, at some point in the chain of informative work that led us to make a mistake.

A letter to our dear readers

3. Journalists must be, as a matter of principle – and I quote Rysard Kapuściński – good people. In our work, there can be no information manipulation, that is, a decision to provide information with calculation. We do not engage in propaganda or public relations, we simply tell stories that we can support with information collected from various actors and which have been verified.

4. Sources must not be allowed to take control of the information, the story. This turns the journalist into an accomplice and copyist.

5. Even less can it be accepted that sources are considered friends or that they are treated as such, this leads to the creation of closeness that can compromise the behavior of journalists.

6. The dizzying nature of journalistic work is no excuse either. Although most of the media have opted for what is called breaking news, this does not mean that they fail in their task of structuring the news with facts and not rumors (today it is the equivalent of social media content).

Not so far, not so near: sources of journalism

7. Journalism is a noble profession – which means that it is more than a job – which is guided by the idea of ​​the common good, understood as what is most useful for the community and which is based on transparency, truth, personal honesty.

8. The journalistic program and content are based on fundamental human rights such as freedom of expression, information and press and pluralism, which are clearly defined and imply responsibilities. (OR)