AEJMC Code of Ethics PF&R

Recommended Ethical Professional Freedom & Responsibility Guidelines

Preamble

Professional freedom and responsibility encompasses research, teaching and service and is related to AEJMC members’ interaction with the media professions through preparation of students for media careers, research examining media roles and responsibilities, and service to the professions through engagement and training. Service in support of professional freedom and responsibility is an essential expectation of every member of AEJMC. Members should work in support of the principles of professional freedom and responsibility within this organization, at their home institutions, and in society at large.

I. Free expression should be nurtured and protected at all levels.
AEJMC members should promote and protect free expression, particularly freedom of speech and freedom of the press. AEJMC members should work to improve the understanding of free expression intellectually, historically and legally. They should also work to implement this freedom in the broadest sense: within the organization, on their campuses, in their communities, and nationally. Free expression is a fundamental right and responsibility; AEJMC members should serve as the voice and support of free expression on their campuses and in their communities whenever that right is threatened. AEJMC as an organization should establish and maintain a position as an advocate of free expression with regional and national authorities that seek to limit this right.

II. Ethical behavior should be supported and promoted at all times.
AEJMC members should seek the highest ethical standards possible through education, research and service. Ethical concerns include such topics as individual privacy, confidentiality, conflict of interest, sensationalism, truthtelling, deception and social justice. AEJMC members should also act ethically with regard to their dealings with students and colleagues, avoiding any appearance of impropriety or unfair treatment.

III. Media criticism and accountability should be fostered.
AEJMC members should conduct and/or encourage their students to conduct constructive evaluation of the professional marketplace. AEJMC members should work with practitioners and industry watchdog groups to inspire media analysis and foster media accountability. AEJMC members should act as media critics on their campuses and within their communities. AEJMC as an organization should promote the recognition and reward of effective media criticism, and should provide a voice in regional and national discussions of media accountability.

IV. Racial, gender and cultural inclusiveness should be encouraged and recognized.
AEJMC members should work to make certain that racial, gender and cultural inclusiveness are included in curricula and focused on in institutional hiring decisions. The work of women and minorities should be represented in the curriculum; efforts should be made to include segments of the population historically excluded from public communication because of lack of opportunity. Within AEJMC, divisions and interest groups that show marked success in embracing racial, gender and cultural inclusiveness should be identified and, whenever possible, rewarded. AEJMC as an organization should collaborate with other media organizations that promote diversity and should provide a voice in regional and national discussions in this area.

V. Public service contributions should be expected of all AEJMC members.
AEJMC members have a mandate to serve society beyond their teaching and research. AEJMC members should offer services related to their appropriate professional fields, particularly activities that enhance understanding among media educators, professionals and the general public. AEJMC members should assist the organization, other media organizations, and media practitioners.

VI. AEJMC programs and faculty should make every effort to insure equal opportunity for students to enter student contests.
Preference and special coaching should not be offered to individuals singled out by faculty. The effort to win contests should not have undo influence over curriculum or the way in which student publications of broadcasts are staffed or structured.

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AEJMC Elected Standing Committee on PF&R

About the Standing Committee on Professional Freedom and Responsibility:

AEJMC PF&R: Who We Are, What We Do and Where We’re Going
The AEJMC Elected Committee on Professional Freedom and Responsibility (PF&R) focuses on five core areas: Free Expression; Ethics; Media Criticism and Accountability; Diversity and Inclusion; and Public Service.

AEJMC PF&R selects annual winners of the AEJMC Equity and Diversity Award and the AEJMC First Amendment Award; provides nominations for the Dorothy Bowles Award for Outstanding Public Service; advises the AEJMC President in drafting presidential statements on important issues that are central to AEJMC’s mission; and sponsors hearings of resolutions during the annual conference.

In addition to coordinating professional freedom and responsibility activities across all AEJMC divisions and interest groups, the AEJMC PF&R Committee provides annual constructive reviews of activities of AEJMC divisions and groups in the five core areas of professional freedom and responsibility. AEJMC PF&R encourages all AEJMC divisions and interest groups to cover all five core categories over a period of a few years. No division or interest group is expected to emphasize all five PF&R categories every year, but each AEJMC unit is encouraged to make general improvements and maintain a high level of PF&R activity.

Duties and Responsibilities of Professional Freedom & Responsibility Committee Members:

• (Fall) Serve as liaison to two or three divisions, working most closely with the division PF&R chairs. Make sure each divisional PR&R chair has a copy of “Tips for PF&R Division Chairs.” This liaison work should begin early in the academic year, preferably at the August conference but certainly in early fall. Make it clear that the PF&R standing committee is there to help by suggesting activities and encouraging innovative projects.
• (Spring) Continue contacts with PF&R chairs of assigned divisions.
• (Summer before conference) One member takes part in the division/IG assessment process each year. This requires reading annual reports for 5 to 6 groups and participating in a one-on-one interview process at the conference.
• (Second day of conference) Committee sponsors a Resolutions Hearing. The committee also meets later that day. In recent years, a vice chair and resolutions chair for the coming year are elected. The vice chair will advance to chair a year later. The resolutions chair will serve for the next year’s annual meeting. The PF&R Committee chair attends the opening AEJMC Board of Directors’ meeting and reports to the membership at the business meeting. The incoming committee chair attends the second AEJMC Board of Directors’ meeting. The newly elected committee vice chair might attend to observe and get an idea of what he/she will do the following year.

PF&R Committee Standards for Evaluation of AEJMC Activities:

(March 1986, revised August 2010, August 2020)
Definition
The Standing Committee on Professional Freedom and Responsibility – like the two other standing committees on Teaching and on Research – has been charged with providing annual constructive reviews of AEJMC activities. The focus of this committee can be understood by a close examination of its title.

This is the committee charged with focusing on the standards and work environments of the professions that are the focus of our teaching and research. The term “professional” in the committee’s name refers to professional communicators who work in journalism; public relations; advertising; digital media; communication research; the non-profit, government and health care sectors; and entertainment media. Therefore, “professional freedom” refers to the freedom of communicators to express themselves. “Professional responsibility” refers to the standards that should exist in media and communication professions. < Download the complete document >

PF&R Committee Expectations for Divisions/Interest Groups:

1. The committee expects PF&R activities both during the annual convention and during the year between conventions.
2. Each division/interest group need not emphasize all five categories every year. However, divisions/interest groups should devote effort to most of the five categories over a period of a few years. The committee believes that all AEJMC divisions, for example, have interests in all five areas, although some of the categories fit the interests of a single division more than others.
3. The PF&R committee encourages multi-division activities. The committee needs to know the contributions of each division. The comprehensive and accurate reporting of PF&R activities is in itself a service to AEJMC. Accuracy of the reports is extremely important. Check evidence presented in the report with appropriate persons in the division. The PF&R committee reserves the right to ask for further information.
4. Only reported activities can be evaluated. The committee cannot give credit to those activities it does not know about, and the only way to insure that knowledge is through the written annual reports. We need to know the division contribution, the number of members involved, and what concrete action was taken.
5. PF&R activities of divisions must reflect work of the divisions rather than only that of individual division members. Divisions are encouraged to exploit appropriate personal activities so that they do become part of the division’s activities and involve more people. Divisions must make clear the division’s participation.
6. The quality of activities is as important as the quantity. A few activities of high quality are preferred to a long list of activities requiring little effort and producing few results. Quality, of course, is difficult to assess and describe. Any evidence of quality is helpful. Divisions and committees should explain the purpose and objectives of their projects. Evidence of success or completion of planned activities makes reported efforts more convincing.
7. The PF&R committee attempts to omit from consideration those activities which are more appropriately evaluated by one of the other standing committees. It helps to have annual reports clearly designate the appropriate committee. However, if there are activities that clearly apply to PF&R as well as at least one other committee, that should be pointed out in the PF&R section of the report.

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