News Ethics In Journalism

A Suspect "Confession"
After the murder of JonBenet Ramsey, a suspect named John Mark Karr came forward claiming he was the killer. He was turned in by Professor Michael Tracey after Tracey went undercover to message him and gain his trust for 4 years. He confessed to multiple charges against children, but was found not guilty to the murder of JonBenet Ramsey. 

Question: Do you break a confidence with your source if you think it could solve a murder- or protect children half a world away?
          If you ever think that something could solve a murder, then I think that you should immediately go to the authorities to report it. Even if it doesn't solve the case, having enough suspicion to assume that they did it is a problem, especially if they admitted to it. Even at that, Karr was still convicted of multiple crimes.

Using the 'Holocaust' Metaphor
With the intent to promote vegetarianism, a non-profit animal rights association called the PETA used the metaphor "Holocaust on your plate" to refer to eating animals. This was made in tribute to a quote from a respected animal activist named Isaac Bashevis Singer who said "In relation to them [animals], all people are Nazis; for them it is an eternal Treblinka".

 Question: Is "Holocaust on Your Plate" ethically wrong or a truthful comparison?
I think that "Holocaust on Your Plate" is ethically wrong because we are not killing animals out of hate, but out of human nature. We need food to survive, and comparing that to a horrible event that cost so many people their lives is incomparable. Comparing chicken nuggets to a human being is degrading, especially considering the topic. I think that this campaign has some good points, but definitely needs a new motto.

Publishing Drunk Driver's Photos
In order to keep drunk drivers off the road, a news magazine threatened to post offender's pictures in the local magazine. Their reasoning for this was that it was meant to keep people safe by threatening them with an uncomfortable circumstance. Many people do not wanted to be featured in the paper, mostly for this reason, so they decided to use it as a threat against them.

Question: Is this an appropriate policy for a newspaper?

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