Monthly Archives: November 2015

Ethics of image manipulation

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JOURNALISM:

“Never deliberately distort facts or context, including visual information. ”(Society of Professional Journalists, CODE of ETHICS) http://www.spj.org/ethicscode.asp

“Editing should maintain the integrity of the photographic images’ content and context. Do not manipulate images or add or alter sound in any way that can mislead viewers or misrepresent subjects.”
(National Press Photographs Association, CODE of ETHICS) https://nppa.org/code_of_ethics

 

PUBLIC RELATIONS:

HONESTY : We adhere to the highest standards of accuracy and truth in advancing the interests of those we represent and in communicating with the public.
(Public Relations Society of America, CODE of ETHICS) https://www.prsa.org/aboutprsa/ethics/codeenglish/#.VkUbA-m_e7M

 

ADVERTISING:

Advertising, public relations, marketing communications, news, and editorial all share a common objective of truth and high ethical standards in serving the public.
(Advertising Federation, PRINCIPLES and PRACTICES for ADVERTISING ETHICS)
S http://aaftl.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Principles-and-Practices-with-Commentary.pdf

Writing photo captions

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Writing photo captions (also called cutlines)

Photos can’t give us everything; need captions for more detail. Words and photos work together to give us a complete picture.
Caption should engage reader. Pulls reader into story.
Captions get higher readership than body copy.

Short and easy to read; two to three lines

Good captions have two parts:

1) Describes the action; written in present tense

2) Something extra past the action; gives context, develop idea, extra information; usually written in past tense

Should answer the questions that the photo brings up for the viewer. Should provide information that is not visible in the photograph.

Think about Who What When Where Why How

Be careful about inferring emotions or moods; be careful about making assumptions (say what happened; don’t infer emotions, feelings or mood).

Be cautious about the truth of the image. Try to avoid stating the obvious. Explain what we don’t know.