Ethics and Democracy | Ethics and Technology
New York’s FAIR News Act Would Legislate AI Guidelines for Journalists
Unions support the regulation, but First Amendment issues loom.
How Statewide Newsrooms are Navigating the Ethics of Voter Guides
Voter guides are a great way to boost both traffic and credibility but present real ethics challenges, including fairness, balance, and accuracy. Here’s how CalMatters, The Texas Tribune, South Dakota News Watch, and Virginia’s Cardinal News are assuring that their election guides serve their readers with balanced information.
Should Current Events Affect America’s Most Influential Journalism Ethics Code?
Seven of the journalists working on potential revisions to the Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics talked publicly about the process in late April. Some of their concerns may surprise you.
Ethically Navigating Editorial Relationships with Newsroom Donors
What should reporters and editors do when a philanthropic funder starts applying pressure on them to cover, or not to cover, a particular story in which the funder has an interest? Or when the funder complains to the publisher or editor about the direction of a story in progress?
The NYT’s Peter Baker Wants The White House Press Corps to Ditch Its Annual Gala
The esteemed political journalist tells Alison Frankel why he believes the glitzy event, in which journalists host celebrities and applaud for top White House officials, has become a distraction from the principles it is intended to promote.
Featured Resource:
Best Practices: When Are Public Figures Entitled to Privacy?
Ethical journalists have embraced the principle of minimizing harm to vulnerable sources. Do those rules apply when a public figure is involved?
DECODED
Breaking down the ethics codes and guidelines shaping newsrooms across the industry.
A Better Way to Cover Crime and Criminal Justice
Temple University's Yvonne Latty, The Marshall Project's Beth Schwartzapfel, and veteran crime reporter Graham Rayman discuss why lurid, tabloid-style reporting on individual crimes ultimately does not serve news audiences well.
The NYT’s Peter Baker Wants The White House Press Corps to Ditch Its Annual Gala
The esteemed political journalist tells Alison Frankel why he believes the glitzy event, in which journalists host celebrities and applaud for top White House officials, has become a distraction from the principles it is intended to promote.
Featured Resource:
Best Practices: When Are Public Figures Entitled to Privacy?
Ethical journalists have embraced the principle of minimizing harm to vulnerable sources. Do those rules apply when a public figure is involved?
Ethics and Democracy | Ethics and Technology
New York’s FAIR News Act Would Legislate AI Guidelines for Journalists
Unions support the regulation, but First Amendment issues loom.
How Statewide Newsrooms are Navigating the Ethics of Voter Guides
Voter guides are a great way to boost both traffic and credibility but present real ethics challenges, including fairness, balance, and accuracy. Here’s how CalMatters, The Texas Tribune, South Dakota News Watch, and Virginia’s Cardinal News are assuring that their election guides serve their readers with balanced information.
Should Current Events Affect America’s Most Influential Journalism Ethics Code?
Seven of the journalists working on potential revisions to the Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics talked publicly about the process in late April. Some of their concerns may surprise you.
Ethically Navigating Editorial Relationships with Newsroom Donors
What should reporters and editors do when a philanthropic funder starts applying pressure on them to cover, or not to cover, a particular story in which the funder has an interest? Or when the funder complains to the publisher or editor about the direction of a story in progress?
DECODED
Breaking down the ethics codes and guidelines shaping newsrooms across the industry.
A Better Way to Cover Crime and Criminal Justice
Temple University's Yvonne Latty, The Marshall Project's Beth Schwartzapfel, and veteran crime reporter Graham Rayman discuss why lurid, tabloid-style reporting on individual crimes ultimately does not serve news audiences well.
THE ETHICS DIGEST
Pointing you toward the latest news stories and initiatives that place ethics at the forefront.
RESOURCES ARCHIVE
Looking for more information on AI usage for your pitches and essays? Want to know more about how the biggest publications treat ethics in their newsrooms? We compile all of these sources (and more) in our resources library.
UPCOMING EVENTS
New programming scheduled for the upcoming season.
September 29, 2026
12:30 PM EST
September 29, 2026 | 12:30 PM EST
When Sources Don’t Tell The Truth: How Journalists Can Ethically Cover Politics in an Age of Mistrust
Join us for a timely 45-minute webinar featuring New York Times Chief White House Correspondent Peter Baker exploring how journalists can report ethically and effectively on false statements by politicians or other sources. Baker will be interviewed live by Stephen J. Adler, the director of NYU’s Ethics and Journalism Initiative and former Reuters editor-in-chief. As […]
AREAS OF FOCUS
Everyday Ethics
Journalistic ethical standards that form the profession’s foundation.
Ethics and Technology
Ethical implications and challenges that arise from evolving technology.
Ethics and Diversity
Ethical reporting on diverse communities and building ethical structures within newsrooms.
Ethics and Democracy
Ethics, journalism and the democratic process in an increasingly polarized world.
THE LATEST
The latest in ethics news and original commentary.
The NYT’s Peter Baker Wants The White House Press Corps to Ditch Its Annual Gala
The esteemed political journalist tells Alison Frankel why he believes the glitzy event, in which journalists host celebrities and applaud for top White House officials, has become a distraction from the principles it is intended to promote.
Ethics and Democracy | Ethics and Technology
New York’s FAIR News Act Would Legislate AI Guidelines for Journalists
Unions support the regulation, but First Amendment issues loom.
How Statewide Newsrooms are Navigating the Ethics of Voter Guides
Voter guides are a great way to boost both traffic and credibility but present real ethics challenges, including fairness, balance, and accuracy. Here’s how CalMatters, The Texas Tribune, South Dakota News Watch, and Virginia’s Cardinal News are assuring that their election guides serve their readers with balanced information.
Oil Prices and Lessons for the Press from a Failure of Expertise
What we might learn from all those predictions of $150 per barrel.
Quitting In Protest or Staying to Fight: Ethical Considerations
Should a journalist stay or leave when newsroom management appears to be making editorial decisions for political, financial, or other non-journalistic reasons? The question has arisen dramatically at CBS’s 60 Minutes, of course, but also in recent years at The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times, among others. Just last week, tech journalist Kara […]
Ethically Navigating Editorial Relationships with Newsroom Donors
What should reporters and editors do when a philanthropic funder starts applying pressure on them to cover, or not to cover, a particular story in which the funder has an interest? Or when the funder complains to the publisher or editor about the direction of a story in progress?
Should Current Events Affect America’s Most Influential Journalism Ethics Code?
Seven of the journalists working on potential revisions to the Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics talked publicly about the process in late April. Some of their concerns may surprise you.
2026 Collier Symposium: Balancing Privacy and Disclosure, Publishing in the Face of Opposition, and Working with Vulnerable Sources
From student editors to veteran reporters, Collier Award winners offered a master class in journalism done right
NYU Ethics and Journalism Initiative Announces First, Second, Third Prizes for Peter F. Collier Awards for Ethics in Journalism
Awardees recognized in ceremony featuring Marty Baron, Dean Baquet, and more.
Our Shared Ethical Compass
Keynote address of the Peter F. Collier Awards for Ethics in Journalism, April 15, 2026 delivered by Marty Baron, acclaimed former executive editor of The Washington Post and The Boston Globe.
