Ethics: A Quiz!

What I would like you to do is to answer the following questions in an email. Then, send the email to me no later than 9 a.m. Monday to omars@msu.edu, with the subject line of ethics quiz. This is a closed-book quiz; please take it after reading the ethics chapter and blog post, but DO NOT use those materials while actually taking the quiz. 

No, I can't make sure you're being honest. But journalists are only as good as their integrity. Ethics are what you do when no one is looking, right? So, don't cheat.

Here are your questions, to be answered in a true/false format:

1. Many reporter decisions have unintended and long-term consequences.

2. A question to ask when making an ethical decision is, "Does this decision fit the kind of journalism I believe in and the way people should treat one another?"

3.  Two important questions to ask when facing ethical decisions are "Who will be hurt, and how many?" and "Who will be helped, and how many?"

4. Deciding which side to present first in a story is a value judgment.

5. Managing editors encourage their journalists to become involved in city politics.

6. It is usually all right for reporters to interfere with police procedures.

7. News stories often are the sources of a second wound to victims.

8. The mirco issue is the main reason for publishing or airing a story.

9. Good journalists are also compassionate journalists.

10. It is ethical to lie about being a reporter when the result is a good story.

11. It is now acceptable to publish the names of all juvenile defenders.

12. Gossip is a good source for news topics.

13. Journalists must learn to recognize their biases.

14. Professional organizations can compel members to follow their ethics codes.

15. Being ethical means being able to distinguish between right and wrong.