Embed Size (px)
DESCRIPTION
Paper presented at AEJMC conference in Washington, DC, in August 2013. Abstract: This paper offers a historical examination of the journalistic norms surrounding the practice of citing anonymous sources. The author examines a variety of textbooks, guidebooks, trade press coverage, and codes of ethics over the past century. The analysis reveals that unnamed attribution, once scorned as a journalistic practice, has gained acceptance over time. As journalistic norms have evolved, the acceptance of the practice has spread beyond national government and international reporting to local coverage. Despite the general acceptance of this practice, journalistic norms surrounding when and how to use anonymous sources remain unsettled. This analysis also finds that journalism textbooks more often describe common practices of journalists rather than provide normative directives as to how journalists should act. Importantly, this study reveals that a journalistic tradition of independently verifying information from unnamed sources has dramatically diminished.
Citation preview
A HISTORICAL ANALYSIS OF THE JOURNALISM NORMS SURROUNDING THE
USE OF ANONYMOUS SOURCES
BY MATT J. DUFFY, PH.D.KENNESAW STATE UNIVERSITY
KENNESAW, GA.
Unnamed Attribution
Purview of the study
How did journalists approach the practice of using anonymous sources over time?
Primary and secondary sources Textbooks – dating back to 1907 Codes of ethics – ASNE, SPJ Style guides: NYT,
Washington Post, AP Trade magazine coverage
(All images public domain. Source: www.morguefile.com)
Lit review
Boeyink (1990) argued anonymous sourcing overused, provided guidelines for limited use
Blankenship (1992) disagreed, noted value to society of discussing issues revealed via anonymity
Son (2003) stressed “leaks” from government gave officials too much power to shape news coverage
Smith (2007), Sternadori and Thorson (2009) found some audiences didn’t trust anonymous sourcing
Duffy and Williams (2012) found anonymous sourcing peaked in 1960s, 1970s
Methodology
Textbooks picked from bookshelf at Georgia State University library 31 textbooks total (census), examined for any reference to
unnamed sources Focused on “nuts and bolts” books, not theoretical Excluded books devoted to ethics, journalism outside US
SPJ, ASNE codes of ethics (started changing in 70s)
Style manuals from NYT, Washington Post, APAny mention of “Anonymous Sources” in CJRAnalyzed how texts treated use of unnamed
sources
Findings – four major conclusions
Anonymous sourcing not always accepted practice. Practice became widely established and accepted
among journalists in 1970s, but parameters varied In last two decades, normative guidelines not
offered in journalism textbooks. Norm of independently verifying
all information attributed to unnamed sources (once widely stressed) diminished dramaticallyby 2000s.
Not always accepted
Earliest textbooks don’t mention anonymous sourcing, first reference is 1955
Hohenberg (1960) says: “Editors [in the past] generally insisted that the
sources of the news must be identified by name, whether or not they could be quoted directly. The presence of an anonymous figure, who could not be described in any way except in relation to what he represented, was almostan affront to many reporters and editors.”
Foreign coverage tended to be exception “Lindley Rule” – Newsweek war reporter
Widely used, but differing parameters
By 1970s, anonymous sourcing accepted practice
More emphasis on normative guidelinesBush (1970): Source must be reliable, purpose honorable Burrows (1977): Must be important, apparently true, independently verified, danger to life or profession
SPJ code introduced in 1975: “Unless there is clear and pressing need to
maintain confidences, sources of information should be identified.”
In 1980s, far less rigorous: Rivers (1984): No guidelines for use, cited ex.:
Biz owner could be quoted anonymously to criticize city policy.
Not all texts offer normative guidance
After 1980s, normative guidance far less likely in textbooks
Instead, textbooks described how media outlets practiced journalism
Code of ethics, style manuals provided substantial normative guidance
Independent verification rule wanes
In 1970s, many textbooks stressed independent verification of anonymous information
Jibed with common understanding of Watergate reporting Some now call Watergate verification rule dubious
Williams (1978): Journalists “decry the story based on a single
unnamed source. The writer, therefore, must get confirmation, not from other unnamed people, but from records and from attributable sources.”
By 2000s, importance of verification rule waned
Independent verification rule wanes
NYT editor Bill Keller (2008): “Quantity is not the same as quality, which is why we
do not have a “two source rule” or a “three source rule.” One actual participant in an event may be better than three people who heard about it third‐hand, or from one another. One neutral witness may be more valuable than a crowd of partisans”
AP style book (2004): Journalists should “be sure to seek more than one
source for the story.”AP style book (2009) omits the sentence(Washington Post notably still requires it)
My conclusions, recommendations
Anonymous sourcing should be treated with more care (as it apparently was in the 1950s)
Journalism textbooks should contain normative guidelines, not just industry practices
We should debate whether independent verification should be required
Perhaps guidelines forwhen single-source anonymous source is OK?
The End!
Slides posted on: www.mattjduffy.comFollow me at: www.Academia.eduAnd on Twitter: @mattjduffyEmail: [email protected]
