The Stumbles That Led to an Ethics Blunder

Washington Post by Andrew Alexander | Jul. 12, 2009 (Opinion)

The Washington Post's ill-fated plan to sell sponsorships of off-the-record "salons" was an ethical lapse of monumental proportions.

Publisher Katharine Weymouth and Executive Editor Marcus Brauchli have now taken full responsibility for what was envisioned as a series of 11 intimate dinners to discuss public policy issues. For a fee of up to $25,000, underwriters were guaranteed a seat at the table with lawmakers, administration officials, think ... Full Story »

Posted by NewsTrust Staff - via MuckRack, Jay Rosen, Memeorandum

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Subjects: Politics, Media, Business
Topics: Ethics in Journalism, Corporate Governance, Media and Politics, Money and Politics
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# Tweets: 25 (as of 2009-07-11)
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Posted by: Posted by NewsTrust Staff - Jul 11, 2009 - 8:12 AM PDT
Reviewed by: Fabrice Florin (review), Katrina Dix (review), Michael Bugeja (review), Glenn LaBauve (review)
Content Type: Article
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4.8
 by Glenn LaBauve - Jul. 22, 2009

That any organization would alllow one of its own to investigate and publicly admit its fault is admirable. To allow that person the freedom to show the feet of clay is step in returning to credibility.

See Full Review » (12 answers)
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4.7
 by Michael Bugeja - Jul. 13, 2009

Every NewsTrust.net reviewer should take a break from politics and read or review this exceptional analysis of an ethical breach at The Washington Post.

I know and have worked with Andy Alexander who served on our Advisory Council at Ohio University's Journaism School when I taught there. His ... More »

Historically at quality newspapers such as The Post, a firewall exists between the business and news departments to ensure editorial integrity and independence. The Post ... More »

Disclosure: Michael is involved in this story as a friend (review not included in overall rating). Help
See Full Review » (21 answers)
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3.6
 by Fabrice Florin - Jul. 12, 2009
See Full Review » (4 answers)
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3.6
 by Katrina Dix - Jul. 13, 2009

This is a fairly high quality opinion - the author opens with an evaluation of the situation, which he then supports reasonably well. However, if it weren't for the brief inclusion of WaPo's ethical standards, the author would not have have clearly stated in what what this incident represents a failure.

See Full Review » (5 answers)

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