CIVIX Explains: Journalism Standards

Journalism is the practice of researching, verifying, and presenting information to the public. But not all journalism is created equally. You can evaluate the quality of a journalistic report by looking for the standards that define journalism.

Journalism is the practice of researching,

verifying, and presenting
information to the public.

But not all journalism is created equally.

Reports can range from short
bulletins written quickly,

to substantial investigations that take
a lot of time and effort to produce.

Some reporting that looks like journalism

may not have the same standards
of research and rigor

as reports produced by
professional organizations.

To confuse matters more,

false and misleading information online

can also look like journalism.

With so many different sources available
to us, it is important to determine

which information is reliable and which
is not. One key way to do this is to seek

out information from organizations that
operate according to a set of standards.

Professional news organizations

won't always get it right,

but a story is more likely to be reliable

if it is produced in a process

that involves a commitment to accuracy.

You can evaluate the
quality of a journalistic report

by looking for some of the standards
that define journalism.

Accuracy

Does the news organization
have a reputation for professionalism?

Do they have a policy
for correcting mistakes?

Research

How many people
are interviewed or quoted in the story?

What supporting research or statistics
are included?

Sourcing

Are the people quoted experts or otherwise
qualified to speak about the issue?

Context

Does the story include

background information

to help you understand
the key themes better?

Fairness

Are people and issues described
using neutral language?

Not all journalism will meet
the same standards.

Becoming familiar with
professional news organizations

and the standards that define journalism

can help us determine what to trust.