RESEARCH 4 - 12 Ethical Standards

ETHICAL STANDARDS

 

1. Act honourably – Never put your own gain above the welfare of your clients or others to whom you have a professional responsibility. Always consider the wider interests of society in your judgement.

2. Act with integrity – Be trustworthy in all that you do – never deliberately mislead, whether by withholding or distorting information.

3. Be open and transparent in your dealings– Share the full facts with your clients, making things as plain and intelligible as possible.

4. Be accountable for all your actions –Take full responsibility for your actions and don’t blame others if things go wrong.

5. Know and act within your limitations –Be aware of the limits of your competence and don’t be tempted to work beyond these. Never commit to more than you can deliver.

6. Be objective at all times – Give clear and appropriate advice. Never let sentiments or your own interests cloud your judgement.

7. Always treat others with respect –Never discriminate against others.

8. Set a good example – Remember that both your public and private behavior could affect your own, RICS’ and other members’ reputations.

9. Have the courage to make a stand –Be prepared to act if you suspect a risk to safety or malpractice of any sort.

10. Comply with relevant laws and regulations – Avoid any action, illegal or litigious, that may bring the profession into disrepute.

11. Avoid conflicts of interest –Declare any potential conflicts of interest, personal or professional, to all relevant parties.

12. Respect confidentiality – Maintain the confidentiality of your clients’ affairs. Never divulge information to others unless it is necessary.

 Although all the factors above are equally important, one of the most important ones in my view is the one about being accountable for all your actions and taking full responsibility of the problems you have caused. I believe this one is the most important because of how it links to all the other ones about knowing your limitations and following the law and its regulations both within the law and out for safety and precaution reasons, this is because if you do any of these things it all leads back to the journalist being responsible for all these things, and them having to face the consequences of their decisions.

 Another factor that seems to be one of the most important is about setting a good example, and being professional about the job that you are doing, because people are looking up to that person and they need to be setting an example to show how it’s done and not being misled by others because it is not only the journalist reputation that would go down but the station also.

Lastly one other factor that I believe is important is to act honorable This is because by being honourable and fair it allows the journalist to be thoughtful of others and to understand that the audience and helping the station are the most important thing and that they need to be put first and not the personal desires of the journalist, especially if they’re are putting their own personal gain before the needs of the clients. Overall,  by looking at all these ethical standards it act as guidelines for when doing my own newscast because I will know what rules to follow to ensure that I can report to the best of quality and so that I can avoid any problems that occur.

Sources: Class notes.