►On SPJ’s Ethics Central discussion of the Code, Lynn Walsh of Trusting News described specific ways journalists can explain their efforts to reach sources: “If someone doesn’t respond to your request for an interview, clearly explain how you tried to reach them. If you emailed and called multiple times, include that in the story. Consider linking to the emails you sent or showing the text messages. If it was a breaking story and a person had a very limited amount of time to respond, explain that. Use language like, ‘didn’t immediately respond’ or ‘WAAA reached out to xxx but hasn’t received a response. Since this is a breaking news story, we will be updating it with their response if and when we receive one.’”
Source: https://ethicscentral.org/ethicscode/
►Like many news organizations, ProPublica has a “no surprises” policy to ensure that sources know what a story will say about them, and to give sources the opportunity to respond.
In 2023, ProPublica saw its ethical approach used against it. Reporters contacted U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito to describe the upcoming story’s claims and offer a chance to respond. Instead, Alito refused to comment to ProPublica and instead published a column in The Wall Street Journal to rebut the story before ProPublica’s story was published. In its explanation of those events, ProPublica said it will continue its “no surprises” policy, even when its ethical approach was used against in it an arguably unethical way: “Regardless of the consequences, we will continue to give everyone mentioned in our stories a chance to respond before publication to what we’re planning to say about them.
“Our practice, known internally as ‘no surprises,’ is a matter of both accuracy and fairness. As editors, we have seen numerous instances over the years in which responses to our detailed questions have changed stories. Some have been substantially rewritten and rethought in light of the new information provided by subjects of stories. On rare occasions, we’ve killed stories after learning new facts.”
Source: https://www.propublica.org/article/behind-scenes-alito-wall-street-journal-prebuttal-editorial
►To “diligently seek subjects of news coverage to allow them to respond to criticism or allegations of wrongdoing,” is not to abdicate the fundamental reportorial responsibility to seek truth. New York University’s Jay Rosen wrote that merely seeking comment from two sides risks creating “he said, she said journalism” or false equivalence. Instead of journalists striving for balance, Yale scholar and former Supreme Court reporter Linda Greenhouse implored, “How about truth for a goal?”
Sources:
- http://archive.pressthink.org/2009/04/12/hesaid_shesaid.html
- https://niemanreports.org/articles/challenging-he-said-she-said-journalism/
►The Global Investigative Journalism Network describes the importance of “no surprise” correspondence with sources before publication. It also provides tips and examples of the letters that summarize findings and seek comment.
Source: https://gijn.org/2021/07/07/seeking-comment-for-your-investigation-tips-for-the-no-surprises-letter/