The European Journalism Centre has drafted an international code of media ethics which it hopes could be used for training and editorial decision-making in the future. The code, which is still in the early stages of development, details five ethical standards in journalism and asks that a journalist or blogger: seeks out the truth; respects privacy unless clearly in the public interest; defends press freedom and authors' rights; rejects discrimination and sensationalism; presumes innocence and protects sources. It combines the national codes of France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK from Ethic Net along with the Bloggers Code of Ethics from Cyberjournalist.
EJC editor Howard Hudson said the latest draft followed a resolution from the European Parliament last month that there should be a code of ethics applicable to new media.Hudson added that the draft code is not designed to be enforced by an external authority, but as a point of reference for training and editorial decision-making. Hudson has now created a community page about the code on the EJC website and will be inviting journalists and bloggers to help develop the code through rationales and case studies.
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