Organization:British
National Union of Journalists
Source: Code
of Conduct - UK
Date Approved:
June 29, 1994
Other Version(s) in our Codes
of Ethics Online Collection:None
of Ethics Online Collection:None
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Code of Conduct
Adopted on 29 June 1994 by British National Union of Journalists (NUJ).
- A journalist has a duty to maintain the highest professional
and ethical standards.
- A journalist shall at all times defend the principle of
the freedom of the press and other media in relation to
the collection of information and the expression of comment
and criticism. He/she shall strive to eliminate distortion,
news suppression and censorship.
- A journalist shall strive to ensure that the information
he/ she disseminates is fair and accurate, avoid the expression
of comment and conjecture as established fact and falsification
by distortion, selection or misrepresentation.
- A journalist shall rectify promptly any harmful inaccuracies,
ensure that correction and apologies receive due prominence
and afford the right of reply to persons criticised when
the issue is of sufficient importance.
- A journalist shall obtain information, photographs and
illustrations only by straight- forward means. The use of
other means can be justified only by over-riding considerations
of the public interest. The journalist is entitled to exercise
a personal conscientious objection to the use of such means.
- Subject to the justification by over-riding considerations
of the public interest, a journalist shall do nothing
which
entails intrusion into private grief and distress.
- A journalist shall protect confidential sources of information.
- A journalist shall not accept bribes nor shall he/ she
allow other inducements to influence the performance of
his/ her professional duties.
- A journalist shall not lend himself/ herself to the distortion
or suppression of the truth because of advertising or other
considerations.
- A journalist shall only mention a person's age, race,
colour, creed, illegitimacy, disability, marital status
(or lack of it), gender or sexual orientation if this information
is strictly relevant. A journalist shall neither originate
nor process material which encourages discrimination, ridicule,
prejudice or hatred on any of the above-mentioned grounds.
- A journalist shall not take private advantage of information
gained in the course of his/ her duties, before the information
is public knowledge.
- A journalist shall not by way of statement, voice or appearance endorse by advertisement any commercial product or service save for the promotion of of his/ her own work or of the medium by which he/ she is employed.
