Beyond clickbait and commerce

Rather than ethics being an issue that raises its head from time to
time as commonly believed by some, Frost argues ethical problems
are ‘dealt with almost on a minute-by-minute basis in journalism’
(p. 4).
The book is of tremendous scope and so quite sensibly treats its
subject in two sections, although disappointingly these sections are
not distinguished as such in the table of Contents, which would
have made navigating easier. The first section (Chs 1-13) examines
journalistic ethics and attempts to provide tools for good or moral
decision-making; the second (Chs 14-21) covers regulation of
journalism in the UK, Ireland and elsewhere, and often makes use
of case studies.
While it may seem a trite matter, throughout the book and in
each of the arguments he presents, Frost goes to considerable and
commendable effort to start at the start. By way of an example,
the first chapter deals with morality and asks the question: what
are ethics? Frost’s answer not only provides a definition, but builds
a nuanced and historicised snapshot of ethics – starting with the
Greek ethikos, meaning ‘of or for morals’ – by revisiting classical
philosophy for its discussion of morality and leading eventually to
the development of a ‘language of morals’ (p. 17).
In a later discussion of the morality of reporting, such painstaking
care at the start leads Frost to make this important observation:
A journalist needs to determine right from the start of any story
why he or she is covering it. If the reasons for covering it are
morally, not just commercially, viable, or if the moral reasons for
using the story outweigh the moral arguments against, then the
journalist should aim to publish. However, it also needs to be
looked at in another way: is a story not being covered because it
is morally, or merely commercially, unjustifiable? (p. 46).
Other chapters on ethics cover what makes a good journalist, the
importance of truth-telling, privacy and intrusion, reputation, and
importantly, the internet.
The second section on regulation includes histories of print
regulation in the twentieth century, and press regulation in the
twenty-first, where Frost discusses the Leveson Inquiry as well as
the lead-up to it in some detail. The second section also covers
broadcasting, codes of conduct and press and broadcasting
regulation systems in the UK and Ireland, as well as a final chapter
on the international experience.
In addition, ten appendices cover (mostly British and European)
codes of practice, ethics guidelines, and regulatory bodies.
Copyright 2016-2/3. Ethical Space: The International Journal of Communication Ethics. All rights reserved. Vol 13, No 2/3 2016 115