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Community Reviews. Showing Rating details. All Languages. More filters. Sort order. Dan rated it liked it Dec 08, Carolyn marked it as to-read Mar 07, Robert Washburn added it May 18, Abigail Licad marked it as to-read Dec 15, Pajamieez added it May 25, Yet staff members, especially those assigned to beats, must be sensitive that personal relationships with news sources can erode into favoritism, in fact or appearance.
And conversely staff members must be aware that sources are eager to win our good will for reasons of their own. Even though this topic defies hard and fast rules, it is essential that we preserve a professional detachment, free of any whiff of bias. Staff members may see sources informally over a meal or drinks, but they must keep in mind the difference between legitimate business and personal friendship. A City Hall reporter who enjoys a weekly round of golf with a City Council member, for example, risks creating an appearance of coziness, even if they sometimes discuss business on the course.
Scrupulous practice requires that periodically we step back and take a hard look at whether we have drifted too close to sources we deal with regularly. The acid test of freedom from favoritism is the ability to maintain good working relationships with all parties to a dispute. Clearly, romantic involvement with a news source would foster an appearance of partiality.
Therefore staff members who develop close relationships with people who might figure in coverage they provide, edit, package or supervise must disclose those relationships to the standards editor or the opinion editor. In some cases, no further action may be needed.
But in other instances staff members may have to recuse themselves from certain coverage. And in still other cases, assignments may have to be modified or beats changed. In a few instances, a staff member may have to move to a different department — from business and financial news, say, to the culture desk—to avoid the appearance of conflict. Staff members must obey the law in the pursuit of news. They may not break into buildings, homes, apartments or offices. They may not purloin data, documents or other property, including such electronic property as databases and email or voice mail messages.
They may not tap telephones, invade computer files or otherwise eavesdrop electronically on news sources. In short, they may not commit illegal acts of any sort. Staff members may not use the identification cards or special license plates issued by police or other official agencies except in doing their jobs.
Staff members whose duties do not require special plates must return them. Staff members may not record conversations without the prior consent of all parties to the conversations.
Even where the law allows recording with only one party aware of it, the practice is a deception. Masthead editors may make rare exceptions to this prohibition in places where recordings made secretly are legal. The Times pays the expenses when its representatives entertain news sources including government officials or travel to cover them. In some business situations and in some cultures, it may be unavoidable to accept a meal or a drink paid for by a news source.
Whenever practical, however, the reporter should suggest dining where The Times can pay. Staff members may not accept free or discounted transportation and lodging except where special circumstances give us little or no choice. Among them are certain military or scientific expeditions and other trips for which alternative arrangements would be impractical — for example, a flight aboard a corporate jet during which an executive is interviewed.
Staff members should consult their supervisors and the standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor when special circumstances arise. Staff members who review artistic performances or cover athletic or other events where admission is charged for example, the New York Auto Show may accept the press passes or tickets customarily made available.
No other staff members, not even editors in the culture and sports departments, may accept free tickets. Even when paying the box office price, no staff member may use his or her Times position to request choice or hard-to-get seats unless the performance has a clear bearing on his or her job. Staff members compete zealously but deal with competitors openly and honestly. We do not invent obstacles to hamstring their efforts. When we use facts reported by another publication, we attribute them.
Staff members may not join teams covering news events for other organizations, and they may not accept payment from competitors for news tips. They may not be listed on the masthead of any non-Times publication. Exceptions can be made for publications that do not in any way compete with The Times, such as a church or synagogue newsletter, an alumni magazine or a club bulletin.
Staff members may not accept gifts, tickets, discounts, reimbursements or other inducements from any individuals or organizations covered by The Times or likely to be covered by The Times.
Gifts should be returned with a polite explanation. A sample letter for use in such situations appears below. See the appendix. Staff members may not accept employment or compensation of any sort from individuals or organizations who figure or are likely to figure in coverage they provide, edit, package or supervise. Staff members may not accept anything that could be construed as a payment for favorable coverage or as an inducement to alter or forgo unfavorable coverage.
They may share in reprint fees that other journalistic media pay The Times, according to the terms of our contract with the Newspaper Guild. Staff members may accept any gifts or discounts available to the general public. Normally they are also free to take advantage of conventional corporate discounts that the Times Company has offered to share with all employees for example, corporate car rental rates.
Staff members must be mindful, however, that large discounts — even those negotiated by the Times Company — may create the appearance of partiality, especially by those who have a hand in the coverage of the company or industry offering the discount. If General Motors, for instance, offers substantial trade discounts to all Times Company employees, the Detroit correspondent should not accept without discussing the possible appearance of favoritism with the responsible editors.
If any such discounts do raise doubts, staff members should bring them to the attention of their department heads and the standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor before accepting. Staff members may not accept allocations from brokerage firms. It is an inherent conflict for a Times staff member to perform public relations work, paid or unpaid. They may not, for example, advise candidates for public office, write or edit annual reports or contribute to the programs of sports teams.
See the section on Community Service for a fuller discussion of permissible participation. Staff members may not serve as ghost writers or co-authors for individuals who figure or are likely to figure in coverage they provide, edit, package or supervise.
They may not undertake such assignments for organizations that espouse a cause. Staff members may not engage in financial counseling except in the articles they write.
They may not manage money for others, proffer investment advice, or operate or help operate an investment company of any sort, with or without pay. They may not do anything that would require registration as an investment adviser. They may, however, help family members with ordinary financial planning and serve as executors or administrators of estates of relatives and friends and as court-appointed conservators and guardians.
No staff member who takes part in a broadcast, webcast, public forum or panel discussion may write or edit news articles about that event. Staff members should be especially sensitive to the appearance of partiality when they address groups that might figure in coverage they provide, edit, package or supervise, especially if the setting might suggest a close relationship to the sponsoring group.
Before accepting such an invitation, a staff member must consult with the standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor. Generally, a reporter recently returned from the Middle East might comfortably address a suburban synagogue or mosque but should not appear before a group that lobbies for Israel or the Arab states.
A reporter who writes about the environment could appropriately speak to a garden club but not to conservation groups known for their efforts to influence public policy. Staff members invited to make such appearances should consult their supervisors and the standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor. Staff members should not accept invitations to speak where their function is to attract customers to an event primarily intended as profit-making.
Staff members may accept speaking fees, honorariums, expense reimbursement and free transportation only from educational or other nonprofit groups for which lobbying and political activity are not a major focus.
Fees earned under Times auspices for promotional or other approved purposes need not be included. Staff members who write books and want to promote them must give their supervisor a schedule of proposed appearances. They may accept routine expenses and fees in promotional appearances, but they must make every effort to ensure that their appearances conform to the spirit of these guidelines and do not interfere with their responsibilities to the paper.
If they have doubts about an appearance, they must consult their supervisor and the standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor. Speeches and other outside endeavors by staff members, or unpaid, should not imply that they carry the endorsement of The Times unless they do.
To the contrary, the staff member should gracefully remind the audience that the views expressed are his or her own. Thus no staff member should agree to an extensive speaking schedule without approval from a supervisor. Staff members may not enter competitions sponsored by individuals or groups who have a direct interest in the tenor of Times coverage.
They may not act as judges for these competitions or accept their awards. Common examples are contests sponsored by commercial, political or professional associations to judge coverage of their affairs. The standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor may make exceptions for competitions underwritten by corporate sponsors if broad in scope and independently judged, such as the University of Missouri awards for consumer journalism, long sponsored by J.
Staff members may compete in competitions sponsored by groups whose members are all journalists or whose members demonstrably have no direct interest in the tenor of coverage of the field being judged. Times staff members may act as judges for such competitions and accept their awards. This prohibition on taking part in sponsored competitions applies to film festivals or awards in which critics are asked to vote and to such competitions as the Tony Awards, the Heisman Trophy, most valuable player and rookie of the year honors and admission to sports halls of fame.
A current list of some competitions that The Times has approved is posted on the Newsroom home page under Policies. Staff members who would like to enter others should consult their supervisors and the standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor. Staff members who win unsought awards from groups that do not meet the criteria established here should decline politely. A sample reply appears below in the appendix. Normally staff members are free to accept honorary degrees, medals and other awards from colleges, universities and other educational institutions.
Those who cover higher education or supervise that coverage should be sensitive to any appearance of coziness or favoritism. Those in doubt should consult the standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor. Staff members who borrow equipment, vehicles or other goods for evaluation or review must return the borrowed items as soon as possible. Similarly, items borrowed to be photographed, such as fashion apparel or home furnishings, should be returned promptly.
Staff members may keep for their own collections — but may not sell or copy — books, recordings, tapes, compact discs and computer programs sent to them for review.
Such submissions are considered press releases. Recorded or digital media, such as tapes or disks, must be destroyed or returned to the provider if not retained by the journalist; they may not be copied, given away or left where they could be carried off for illicit copying or reuse. Staff members may not collaborate in ventures involving individuals or organizations that figure or are likely to figure in coverage they provide, edit, package or supervise. Among other things, this prohibition applies to collaborating in writing books, pamphlets, reports, scripts, scores or any other material and in making photographs or creating artwork of any sort.
Except in reviews or columns published in The Times or on its website or appropriately voiced in authorized public appearances, staff members may not offer endorsements, testimonials or promotional blurbs for books, films, television programs or any other programs, products or ventures.
Masthead editors may authorize rare exceptions for instance, when a staff member has become expert in a field unrelated to his or her Times duties. This restriction does not apply when permission is given to reprint Times material.
Staff members of The Times are family members and responsible citizens as well as journalists. The Times respects their educating their children, exercising their religion, voting in elections and taking active part in community affairs. Nothing in this policy is meant to infringe upon those rights. But even in the best of causes, Times staff members have a duty to avoid the appearance of a conflict.
Certain of these requirements apply to all newsroom and opinion employees, journalists and support staff alike. In particular, no one may wear campaign buttons or display any other sign of political partisanship while on the job.
Journalists have no place on the playing fields of politics. Staff members are entitled to vote, but they must do nothing that might raise questions about their professional neutrality or that of The Times. In particular, they may not campaign for, demonstrate for, or endorse candidates, ballot causes or efforts to enact legislation. They may not wear campaign buttons or themselves display any other insignia of partisan politics. They should recognize that a bumper sticker on the family car or a campaign sign on the lawn may be misread as theirs, no matter who in their household actually placed the sticker or the sign.
Staff members may not themselves give money to, or raise money for, any political candidate or election cause. Given the ease of Internet access to public records of campaign contributors, any political giving by a Times staff member would carry a great risk of feeding a false impression that the paper is taking sides.
No staff member may seek public office anywhere. Seeking or serving in public office plainly violates the professional detachment expected of a journalist. Staff members must keep in mind that neighbors and other observers commonly see them as representatives of The Times.
Staff members may appear from time to time on radio and television programs devoted to public affairs, but they should avoid expressing views that go beyond what they would be allowed to say in the paper. Opinion writers enjoy more leeway than others in speaking publicly because their business is expressing opinions. The Times nevertheless expects them to consider carefully the forums in which they appear and to protect the standards and impartiality of the newspaper as a whole.
Staff members must be sensitive that perfectly proper political activity by their spouses, family or companions may nevertheless create conflicts of interest or the appearance of conflict. When such a possibility arises, the staff member should advise his or her department head and the standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor. Depending on circumstances, the staff member may have to recuse himself or herself from certain coverage or even move to a job unrelated to the activities in question.
A staff member with any doubts about a proposed political activity should consult the standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor. These restrictions protect the heart of our mission as journalists. Though The Times will consider matters case by case, it will be exceedingly cautious before permitting an exception.
Staff members may not serve on government boards or commissions, paid or unpaid. They may not join boards of trustees, advisory committees or similar groups except those serving journalistic organizations or otherwise promoting journalism education. Those in doubt about such activities should consult their supervisors and the standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor. The Times has no wish to impede good community citizenship.
Normally the restriction on joining trustee boards or advisory committees will not apply to organizations that are highly unlikely to generate news of interest to The Times and that do not generally seek to shape public policy. These typically include houses of worship, community charities, local libraries, fine arts groups, hobby groups, youth athletic leagues, country clubs and alumni groups. Within reason staff members may help such groups with relatively modest fundraising. They should not play a leading role or ever lead a donor to expect a favor in return.
They should never solicit anyone with whom they or The Times has professional dealings. Those in any doubt about what is permissible should consult the standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor. Staff members may not solicit funds for political, social, religious, educational, philanthropic or other causes that reach beyond the sorts of groups described in the preceding paragraph.
Doing so could create an expectation of a favor in return. Staff members should think carefully about their own contributions to various causes, bearing in mind the need for neutrality on divisive issues. Those in doubt about contributions should consult their supervisors and the standards editor or the opinion editor or managing editor.
The Times treats advertisers as fairly and openly as it treats readers and news sources. The relationship between The Times and advertisers rests on the understanding, long observed in all departments, that news and advertising are strictly separate — that those who deal with either one have distinct obligations and interests and neither group will try to influence the other.
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