Journalists and the Law: Where is the Line Between Reporting and Doing Police Work?

PROTECTING SOURCES is a longstanding tradition in journalism. Had Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward (above) revealed their primary source during the Watergate scandal, President Richard Nixon may have remained in office and the corruption of that era may have continued.

More recently, former New York Times reporter Judith Miller spent three months in jail rather than reveal the source of her information (which she never even published).

Investigative journalists dig for information, often about people in powerful positions. Their role is to uncover misbehavior. But they are not law enforcement.

This became an issue in France recently after a broadcast journalist went online in chat rooms posing as a 12-year old girl in order to lure pedophiles. The story led to 20 arrests after the reporter and his producers notified police of their findings.

Did the journalists confuse their role in society? Were they grandstanding by taking their information to the police? Is this "gotcha" journalism?

Or are there limits on who journalists protect when it comes to informants?

Was it wrong for the journalist to lie about his identity in order to gain information?

"You Got to Have Passion to be a Columnist."

EUGENE KANE WANTS TO save the world. And it all started because Kane, a Dobbins and Temple grad, thought the media portrayed his North Philly neighborhood in an unrealistic manner. He became a journalist to alter people's opinions about the world.

Here are a few things that stood out for me from his visit to class:

- He says that columnists can't straddle the fence. They need to take one side and support their opinion.
- Many of his columns stem from news events. He does further reporting for his column.
- "You got to have passion to be a columnist," he said.
- Journalists can't ever be completely objective, he believes. They are subjective simply by choosing what stories to write.
- "If you have any curiosity at all, it's fairly easy to find column ideas," he said.

- The idea of being post-racial is absurd, he said. "Race is still a pretty big issues in America."
- A reader recently called him a "racist imbecile."
- "A lot of people will not like anything you do," Kane said. "You got to have thick skin to be a columnist. You shouldn't be in journalism if you don't have thick skin."
- He wants his columns to stir a reaction. If they do not evoke a reaction, what is the point?

- "Print will never die," he said.
- He remembers the days when you could smoke in the newsroom.
- Twitter is not a frivolous media unless you treat it like a frivolous media, Kane stated.
- He is not "The Angry Black columnist." He writes about social issues, which often deal with the African-American community.
- The media tend to portray minorities in a negative light, he said.
- If you are interested in becoming a columnist, you need to develop your voice and perspective.
- Blogs are a way to develop that voice.
- Focus on what you know, he said.
- Get an internship. Now.
- Combined with Bill Cosby, Kane is worth more than $300 million.

What stood out for you?

Should Websites Ban Anonymous Commenters?

EUGENE KANE OF THE Milwaukee Journal Sentinel recently wrote about anonymous commenters posting extreme opinions on news websites:

"The blogosphere's popularity over the last decade or so seems to have avoided the requirement for credibility for commenters. As a result, people feel free to comment on whatever they want, however they want, and in many cases, as offensively as they want. Some of them talk big smack, mainly because nobody knows their name."

Should readers be allowed to leave comments without leaving some sort of verifiable identity? Does a lack of identity only breed radical dialogue?

Some people argue that journalists frequently use anonymous sources in stories. Is there any difference?

Post your thoughts in the comments section below. Please leave your name.

And read more of Eugene Kane's work here. Kane (pictured above with Bill Cosby) is a Temple grad who will visit class on Tuesday.

Should the Killer Whale Video Be Released?

A KILLER WHALE killed a trainer at SeaWorld during a performance in February. Security video captured the entire episode. Should it be made available to the public and shown on broadcast news (and the Internet)?

The video was taken into custody by sheriffs, and therefore became a part of the public record. A judge put a temporary ban on the film's release, appeasing the family of the victim and SeaWorld staffers. Over the past week, the two sides were trying to negotiate a deal for the media to see the footage but not publish or air it.

Is there any benefit to the public by showing the video? Does the public have the right to see it? Should the media be allowed to access what is now public record? Or does the family have a right to seal the video showing the death of their loved one?

Can you Go A Day Without News?

HAVE YOU EVER NOTICED that the news fits perfectly in the space of a 30-minute newscast, every day?

Or, as Jerry Seinfeld said, "It's amazing that the amount of news that happens in the world every day always just exactly fits the newspaper."

Do you ever get the idea that sometimes you are getting stuff just to fill the space/ time - info about Tiger's "Transgressions" and the like?

In the age of the Internet, do you feel overloaded with info? Is the news cycle/ production schedule of newspapers and broadcast news outdated? Are the traditional news outlets making themselves irrelevant because they treat people like morons?

Can you do a day without traditional news? How about a week?

What's the Big Sports Story? (Or, Lesson Number One for How to be an Evil PR Person).

THE EAGLES TRADED away their former first-round draft pick who led the team for 11 seasons. They sent him to a division rival. Late Sunday evening. Easter Sunday. The day before the Phillies season opener, where superstar pitcher Roy Halladay was set to make his National League debut. With Barack Obama throwing the ceremonial first pitch.

Oh, and that guy Tiger Woods is returning to the links this week after a five-month hiatus ... because he was having an affair with a few women.

If you ran a news outlet, which story would you lead with and why?

As a second question, do you think the Eagles announced their trade yesterday thinking the story would receive less criticism than during a slow sports news day? It does sort of take a monumental event for the team and bury it in a world of other news.

Finally, do you think the Eagles were trying to steal the thunder from the Phillies?

April Fools Joke? Glenn Beck Fans Towed.

THIS ISN'T A JOURNALISM ethics issue at all. But it is amusing. Enjoy.