Code of Ethics

A journalist’s personal code of ethics is his or her guide of morals and objectivity to create a sense of, if anything, personal credibility. Through such a code, the journalist establishes a trust and understanding with the stakeholders.

As a student of the public relations side of the profession, I believe in order to obtain the highest moral standard of excellence; elements of both the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) code of ethics and the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) code of ethics must be fused. They are but shadowy reflections of each other and to reach what is best for the stakeholders requires a constant reflection of both standards.

When considering an ethical situation, there are ways to focus your decision making process. First ask yourself how you would feel if the story were written about you. Consult others as well. Co-workers can provide great insight with their own experiences. See what the community thinks. What are their values? Getting the opinions of those outside the workspace is a great way to get perspective. Also, view the editor’s opinion. Whether a journalist agrees or not, it will help better his or her understanding before making the final decision. But most importantly, journalists should listen to their own instincts.

Free Flow of Information, Acting Independently and Seeking the Truth
Free flow of accurate and truthful information is essential to serving the public interest and contributing to informed decision making in a democratic society. As a journalist/agent of PR, it is our duty to always keep the interest of the public our number one goal.

Even when the effects of such coverage may do self harm, the outcome creates higher credibility with the stakeholders. Failing to do so is unethical and leads to overall failure. Newspapers have lost credibility from withholding information and corporations have collapsed.

Minimizing Harm and Competition
A journalist must show compassion for those who may be affected adversely by news coverage. Stories dealing with children and inexperienced sources or subjects must be held with care. Those involving tragedy must also be handled with sensitivity. Journalists are not in the business of bringing harm to others.

The same aspect goes for public relations. Professionals in PR should promote a healthy and fair competition among its rival entities. Intentionally bringing harm is immoral to the professional and a poor representation of the corporation he or she represents.

Accountability
A journalist/ agent of PR must always seek to retain and grow in their moral standards. It is important to encourage public critique and to invite open discussion over journalistic and corporation conduct.

They must abide by their standards and expose the unethical standards of others. A newspaper or corporation must know when to admit their mistakes and act positively to correct themselves. Accountability is a direct influence to stakeholder credibility.

Privacy and Safeguarding Confidences
A journalist should respect the boundaries of public and private information if it is not information concerning the community. This especially applies to information that is potentially harmful to the subject. Obtaining information through questionable means is immoral.

As an agent of public relations, it is crucial to safeguard the confidences and privacy rights of present, former and perspective clients and employees. This includes privileged, confidential, or insider information gained from a client or organization. The only exception to this principle is if the information is harmful to the public. Otherwise, leaking such information is an unethical procedure.

Diversity
Understanding diversity is a key element to any journalist/ Agent of PR when in the field. It is always important to stay in tune with the cultural, racial and gender concerns of others that we work with and write about. By doing this, The professional practitioner creates a stronger sense of trust and respect among his or her peers and stakeholders. Failing to keep these aspects in mind can result in personal harm to the reputation of the individual, the corporation or newspaper, and possibly the community's moral.

As a Rule
As a rule it is important to always retain advocacy, honestly, expertise, independence and fairness.

My NYC Playlist

To continue in showing a personal side of myself on my blog, I wanted to share one of my favorite playlists on my computer. This my collection of songs about New York City.

1. “Welcome to New York City” – Cam’ron and Jay Z
2. “New York, New York” – Frank Sinatra
3. “On Broadway” – George Benson
4. “Hey There Delilah” – Plain White t’s
5. “Once Upon a Time in New York City” – Huey Lewis
6. “Marching Bands of Manhattan” – Death Cab for Cutie
7. “A Heart in New York” – Simon and Garfunkel
8. “Angel of Harlem” – U2
9. “New York State of Mind” – Billy Joel
10. “Nights on Broadway” – Bee Gees
11. “In a New York Minute” – Eagles
12. “Another Rainy Day in New York City” – Chicago

Each song has a different feeling genre to it; including alternative/indie, rap, disco, swing, pop, acoustic, and classic rock. I miss New York and every now and then I need these songs to help keep me focused on finding my way back there again. And Let's face it, these songs put me in that "New York State of Mind."

Designing the J-Dept t-shirt

So as the Vice-President of the Ole Miss chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ), I will be designing the Official Journalism Department t-shirts SPJ will be selling next semester.

Department t-shirts are common at Ole Miss. I have seen shirts for the Business and Pharmacy schools as well as the Psychology Department. I'm especially proud because this will be the Journalism Department's first shirt.

Based on specifications from our advisor, Dr. Wickham, and some preferences of my own, I have come up with three basic concepts. The color scheme for each shirt is royal blue with white text to set a more imperial feel. Though each front and back can be mix matched, I've purposefully laid them side by side with the design they best compliment.

The front for the first design is a combination of the Journalism Department logo and the school crest. The back is the first amendment of the constitution. Its look is more of a slight regal tone. Down side is that when I finished it I realized the front was almost a rip off of the university's presidential debate t-shirt.

The second design focuses on the the Journalism logo itself on the front. Since it is much more simple than the other, I needed to make the back of the shirt much louder than the first design. On the back, the three major student organizations of the Journalism Department are featured; SPJ, the National Association of Black Journalists and the Public Relations Association of Mississippi. Since the shirt is SPJ sponsored I did show a little favoritism towards the size of our logo.

The third design for the shirt is definitely my favorite of the three. It is a combination of all of the previous elements for a great overall effect. The front is similar to that of the department's desktop backgrounds in the computer labs and will be more familiar with students. That layout was originally created by Noah Bunn. On the back of the shirt, all of the organizations are once again displayed and the first amendment is below them. As far as which design is used, I would bank on this one.

Very Superstitious

Superstition is a relatively silly concept. The idea that something as trivial as a black cat crossing your path, breaking a looking glass, or wearing that lucky pair of un-washed boxers could determine your fate is pretty un-circumstantial and un-realistic.

Yet so many athletic team members and high powered business executives are some of the worst when it comes to superstitious ritual.

But who am I to judge... I'm just as bad as they are!

When it comes to the number 13, I'm about as superstitious as it gets. I never allow my radio volume to rest on 13. I never finish any quantity of things to total the number 13. I'm especially reluctant when it comes to Friday the 13th. Mostly I justify this by that fact that bad things have actually happened to me when this number is involved. July, Friday 13, 2007 was one of the worst days of my life.

This journal entry is my 13th which is why I'm ranting about “Superstition.” But let’s face it, "Superstition ain't the way."


--------------------------
P.S. That whole "the tail side of a penny is bad luck" is just insane. How is that bad luck? Who cares what side you found it on! You are ONE cent richer than you were before you found the penny! That sounds like good luck to me!!

Man of the Man Committee

Recently I was appointed as the new head of the Man Committee in our fraternity of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia. In Sinfonia, there is the Executive Committee (EC) followed by three separate committees to help bring more focus and organization to our fraternity's mission. The head of each committee reports to the EC.

The individual committees include the divisions of Music, Money and Man. In the Man Committee, we focus on social coordinated events such as brotherhood builders for the probationary and collegiate brothers.

As the new head of the committee, I have two major goals for next semester. The first is Sinfonia's first annual spring formal. The other is "Sinfonia Battle of the Bands."

The formal is a spring semester social event that is designed for optimal brotherhood interaction. This event also serves purpose in showing that the Lambda Xi chapter has grown and matured as a chapter to where we are capable of hosting such an event. We are also co-hosting the event with our sister sorority, Sigma Alpha Iota.

It is an event that I have been personally planning since last spring and up until now I have been considered the "unofficial" coordinator of the event.

The other is a project that Sinfonia has been doing for some time.
"Sinfonia Battle of the Bands" features local bands in competition for a framed golden record award. The event serves as a great venue for the bands as well as big event for Sinfonia.

My intent is to gear the event more towards our philanthropic goals by raising the funds we earn from concessions for the VH1 "Save the Music" Foundation.

Both projects are in their early stages of development and I will be focusing a good bit of time during the holiday break to get them further in motion.

The committee has already discussed some brotherhood builders for next semester so we're definitely off to a great start on that as well.

--------------
Above design: formal concept logo by me.
Below design: Battle of the Bands concept logo by Matt McNulty.

"Obama Drama" Analysis

In the scope of things, to me the greatest triumph in President Elect Barack Obama’s election campaign was the 30 minute infomercial. I definitely want to give a personal analysis of its affect on voters.

In the end, 33.5 million people watched the 30 minute "Obama-drama" Wednesday, October 29th during prime time. The infomercial aired on seven networks including: CBS, NBC, Fox, Univision, MSNBC, BET and TV One. The show, estimated to have cost more than $4 million, marked the first time a presidential candidate used an infomercial to press his candidacy since Ross Perot in 1992.

To be frank, it was a very moving commercial; Romanticized yes, but idealistic and surreal. And for some strange reason, Americans love amber waves of grain across a television screen. The infomercial did not just focus his goals but gave the story of Americans he met along his campaign trail and how his plans will help benefit them.

A key subliminal scene was when you were with Obama in the office. Notice that office seems to resemble that of... an Oval Office! By doing this, Obama was able to give Americans the ease of comfort in seeing him in such a position. It was a very key element that gave undecided voters the appearance of Obama being more than "ready" to step into the role of a world leader.

The infomercial also clearly presented the specifics of Obama's plans to address the most pressing issues. When it comes to undecided voters, they want the “specifics.” Within the biographical parts of the piece, Obama's life story was reiterated as epitomizing the American dream. This was a great way of re-enforcing the “I’m just like you” ideology.

Also, I couldn't help but get hysterical when McCain retaliated to the infomercial saying that Obama's ad was paid for by “broken promises.” If McCain had the funds, he would have done something similar. Maybe he should have paid more attention to Obama's fundraising stategy.

His whole campaign, maximizing the use of the media and internet, was brilliant. Obama definitely put a bench mark in political campaigning by using the internet to raise funds and support.

Honestly I wouldn't be surprised if the Obama infomercial came out on DVD with an Extended Director's Cut and Bonus Features including deleted scenes, a gag reel and the Official Obama Soundtrack considering the millions of dollars he spent just producing and broadcasting this on the networks.

But in the end, such a bold marketing move did exactly what Obama needed for a final push on undecided voters to win the election.

The Great Collapse

A recent in depth report I wrote for THE OXFORD EAGLE concerning the current decline in the local automobile industry.
-----------------------
"Local dealerships cope with soft economy"
By Andrew M. Scott
EAGLE Contributor

One of the many effects of the dramatic drop in the stock market is the corresponding drop in vehicle sales being felt by dealerships every where.

“With a combination of credit restraints and the fear factor of the crash of the stock market, people have essentially stopped car sales,” Oxford’s Chandler Motor Co. President Lawrence Chandler said.

In a recent report from Reuters, in the coming months as many as 3,800 U.S. car dealerships could fail, or nearly one in five across the nation.

As a reminder of the times, an automotive magazine is sprawled across Chandler’s desk with the bold headline, “The Great Collapse.” Consumers and lenders seem to be tightening their belts more these days, he said.

“People who are credit worthy are not buying because they have experienced significant losses in their net worth,” Chandler said. “And people who have lower credit scores who could normally get financing are now finding the door is closed.”

At Cannon Motor Co., 1801 W. Jackson Ave., new car manager Randell Naramore said Cannon is feeling the same effects.

“It’s a lot slower and most of all of your lenders have gotten a lot tighter on who they’re going to lend money to,” Naramore said.

Both, however, remain positive about the customer.

“It’s obviously a buyer’s market and they know they’re getting a great deal and you’re encouraging them to shop around,” Naramore said, “Most dealerships are really competitive right now. We need to move inventory — its no secret.”

“We are taking action to control inventories and reduce expenses where possible,” Chandler said, “It’s a national economic crisis and actions of individual car dealers have little impact on the overall consumer confidence.”

Dekki Jones, assistant sales manager at Belk Ford Mercury Toyota Inc., said they are also increasing incentives.

“ Last month was the first it had really affected us with a sales drop of 41 percent,” Jones said.

“What I think is, people sit at home and watch too much TV,” Jones said about consumers’ wringing their hands over the economy. “Forget about it. Just go out and work and live your life.”

Despite the current crisis, the company’s new and pre-owned sales representative Dennis Freeouf is optimistic.

“I agree with the philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel — history is cyclic and so is the economy,” Freeouf said. “If you’ll go through a text book, you’ll see that though times are rough, there is a light on the other side.”

His main confidence remains in the product.

“Despite the current situation, from what we’re doing, we’ve remained in the top 20 in the state in sales,” Freeouf said. “We do not like turn over; customers do not like turnovers. Customers like a product bought from a company they like and that will follow through.”

But, according to The Detroit Free Press statistics remain low. Across the nation, Toyota sales dropped 32.2 percent, Chrysler sales fell 33 percent and Honda sales were down 28 percent in the past few months. With Ford, sales were down 33.8 percent, 22.5 percent at Lincoln, 43.2 percent, Chrysler sales at 33 percent, and Honda sales down 28 percent.

Chandler said he believes this is a problem the whole nation will have to contend with in order to make change.

“It’s such an enormous issue that I think everyone is frustrated whether you own a dealership, restaurant, small business or factory,” Chandler said. “The solution rests with the combined efforts of all Americans.”

Reports were circulated last week that poor market conditions had convinced Toyota officials to delay the opening of the company’s Blue Springs plant until 2011, but the company is dismissing these media reports, according to AutomotiveWorld.com Toyota officials are saying that for the moment at least, the company plans to continue with preparations to open the facility in 2010.

Published: November 17, 2008
THE OXFORD EAGLE
http://www.oxfordeagle.com/

Going to Jail

So last Friday I went to jail at the Lafayette County Detention Center. It was a very cold and bleak place. It was probably the most creeped out I have been in quite some time.

In two separate cell blocks were the DUI and public drunk arrests from the night before. One was for the guys to sleep in, the other for the girls. The one girl I saw was quiet and hid behind her blanket. The guys on the other hand, were very mocking.

Other cells had convicts in them. Theirs were dim and most of them were asleep except one who was sitting on the floor next to the bars. He just kept glaring at me. His staring would have been more disturbing if he had not been starring at the other eight members of my Advance Reporting class.

Yes, I went to jail as part of a class field trip. I bet I had you going there for a minute. The detention center was just one trip we made in relation to Dr. Kathleen Wickham's emphasis study on criminal case reporting. Our other trips included the federal and circuit courts.

But the detention center was probably the most spine-chilling field trip I have EVER been on. While on the first floor, we viewed the fingerprinting station, the visitors booths, and the maximum security holding cells for prisoners that go out of control. Every other room we went through was another checkpoint for clearance.

On the third floor we saw the court yard and the library which the prisoners choose between for their one hour of free time each day. Then we went to where the year long convicts who were a danger to society are held.

It was strange looking at them as they came to the window to look at us through the 18 inch glass that divided us. The glass itself had a crack in it where one of the prisoners had punched it with his fist two weeks earlier. For the convicts, seeing people was a change from the everyday of sitting in a cell and doing nothing but watch television and clean. For the class, it was a very disturbing sensation of feeling as though we were looking into a human zoo.

Interestingly enough, I learned that convicts can have a small allowance to purchase books and candy. Jails do not provide toilet paper, so convicts have to purchase their own toiletries as well. The conditions are very constricting with their day to day schedule. Each holding area holds a max of 12 cells with one shower. The lighting is dark and the walls are gray. Just being in there for a week would seem dismal when some people stay there for a year.

Hope that you never find yourself on the other side of the 18 inch glass.

Dreams of New York City

So let's talk about the one aspect of the future that is always on my mind, New York City.

Back in the first week of April, I got the chance to go to NYC for the NIT tournament with the Ole Miss basketball team "Rebel Rebound Sound" pep band. The three short days that we were there opened my eyes to a world of opportunity I had never truly considered before.

I fell in love with everything about New York. The constant sense of adventure and excitement was intoxicating. Getting to play in Madison Square Garden was incredible. Broadway and Times Square were amazing. I could spend forever in Central Park. There were even moments where I road the subways by myself.

One time on the subway, just as the doors were closing, a group of young black men jumped on at the last minute. The leader yelled out "Listen up everyone, we've got a very important announcement!" Then they broke out into doo wap a capella for the rest of the ride to the next station. It was great. Mostly it was about political propaganda and the count down until Pres. Bush leaves office. I couldn't help but laugh. They did it in a unique way that drew interest.

The most wonderful moment for me was from the 80th floor of the Empire State Building. It was almost midnight and I could not stop thinking about how I wished none of this would end and I could stay in New York. I thought about a lot that night while overlooking the cityscape. Mostly, I thought about the future. The trip was an epic event that pushed me to dream for something more...

So what's the Plan? I have developed two options.

THE FIRST: is the City University of New York Graduate School of Journalism. For that I've started researching admissions standards, funding and housing. The great aspect to CUNY is that it is located in Times Square and the journalism school helps to provide you with a paid internship during the summer of your spring and fall semesters.

THE SECOND: is probably the most daringly insane aspiration I have yet to conceive, the NBC Page Program. to quote the New York Times, "7,000 people apply for 60 to 85 slots each year, making the page program about 10 times as competitive as admission to Harvard or Yale."

Both of these dreams will take a lot of hard work to accomplish and my focus is on BOTH of them. To be honest, I have never been filled with so much Hope and Fear at the same time. But I believe that you should use fear to compel you; otherwise, it will destroy you. It will be difficult but the odds have never stopped me before.

Someday I will wake up again in the city that never sleeps and it will be so much more than just a dream, but instead a reality.

"Keep your dream alive
Dreaming is still how the strong survive
Once upon a time in New York City."
(Huey Lewis, Oliver and Company Soundtrack)

----------------------------------------
Above Photo: O'Bryon Pams, Holli Lancaster, me, and Becca Roberts in Times Square.
Below Photo: The south side New York cityscape from the Empire State Building.

The NBC Internship

It is a very cold 6:30 a.m. on September 26 and the four shot espresso and two skim milk lattes in my hands are not getting any warmer. At this point in the day, the magnetometers (Mags) are not allowing liquids in the building. At this point, there is only one way to resolve the issue.

“Sir, we’ll let you pass through this time,” the secret serviceman said, “But you’re going to have to taste test them first.”

Without any other choice, I took a sip from each coffee. The espresso was horribly strong. Needless to say, I would not be telling NBC News (CENSORED) what I had to do to get her coffee that morning.

That was just one of many obstacles I faced as a University of Mississippi Presidential Debate intern during the week of the first debate, rushing from one corner of Oxford to another, making constant supply trips to whatever store still had supplies, and always making it just in time.

On average, I made three to four supply trips to Wal-Mart and other businesses each day during the week. Every time I was at Wal-Mart there were always other network interns rushing about as well.

During the internship, I worked for NBC Nightly News and Specials Senior Production Manager Maralyn Gelefsky. It was amazing to work for Ms. Maralyn. She had a lot of experience for me to learn from.

The work that the other 11 NBC selected interns and I did for Gelefsky usually varied from picking up reporters to shuttle different locations, writing emails to correspondents, helping set up equipment, and making various supply runs. Fellow intern Sarah Cure and I even had to chart the best travel route from (CENSORED).

But despite being constantly busy, I did take the time to learn from the experience as it unfolded throughout the week. It was pretty exciting getting to see NBC news in action. The diligence and the work speed of the crew was amazing.

During my time, I kept up with as much of the process as I could during the week; including assembly, production and dis-assembly. I also got to work directly for retired news anchor Tom Brokaw and anchor Brian Williams.

The funniest moment for me was when Brokaw and his wife, Meredith, and I were at a gas station early Saturday morning. As he and I stepped up to the entrance of the Chevron, a little old man in a cap walked up to Brokaw and asked “Are you who I think you are?” Brokaw jokingly said “No, I’m not Eli Manning.”

And believe it or not, I passed through the Mags so many times on Friday that Secret Service and I knew each other on a first name basis by mid-day.

And then there was the night before the debate. It was about 11:30 and we had packed up for the night. Before I left I sat outside in front of the NBC workspace and just watched the people go by as well as the changing colors of the Gertrude Ford Center. Starring up at it gave me memories of when my family would go to Disney World. We would always finish our last night at the Magic Kingdom and I would stare at Cinderella's Castle one last time in awe. I could feel that same peace and contentment looking up at the Ford Center. I could feel the magic...

Overall, with very little sleep throughout the week, the internship was worth it for me. I took every opportunity to be a part of the experience. If it was up to me, I’d still be a part of it right now and maybe one day, I will.

--------------------------------------
Above Photo: Anchor Tom Brokaw, Me, Senior Production Manager Maralyn Gelefsky.
Below Photo: The Gertrude Ford Center the night before the debate.
NOTE: parts of this entry were censored and other events left out in the interest of the NBC/Universal privacy statement.