Tweet23: Social media use requires legal, ethical guides

Social media can be daunting. Know how journalism standards, legal and ethical principles apply. #25HZLWD http://jeasprc.org/tweet23-social-media-use-requires-legal-ethical-guides

Social media are merely other tools in the arsenal of journalism. Social media offer student journalists much in the way of new approaches and coverage possibilities, but like all “new” communication tools of the past they also bring fear and unease. It is imperative that schools and their student media understand and rely on the “legacy” standards of professional journalism, legal and ethical. It is undeniable that new legal and ethical standards will develop, building on the old. Until they do, we can rely on what exists for essential guidance.

More and more scholastic journalism programs rush to join the social media landscape, adding Twitter, Facebook and all types of other quick and digital ways to reach audiences with their coverage.

Some have even gone so far to call media prepared by non-journalists the fifth estate, replacing the fourth estate (to be henceforth called legacy media).

One has to wonder, though, whether the fourth and fifth estates will be that different, indeed, whether they should be that different.

The point, we must argue, is to keep and embellish the basics, the good, from the legacy media and surround it and enhance it with the multimedia approaches of the fifth estate.

In fact, we must also build our programs so they can embrace change and expand as new media emerges.

 Resources:
• Social Media Toolbox
http://hendricksproject.wordpress.com/
• Social Media, the classroom and the First Amendment
http://1forallnet.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/classroomguide-final-12-13-111.pdf
• JEA online ethical guidelines
http://jeasprc.org/online-ethics-guidelines-for-student-media/