Deck 3: Gatekeepers and Manipulators: Truth, Fairness and Accuracy

Question 1

Which of these would be acting as what Merrill refers to as "moral Machiavellians"?

A) Journalists who name the victim after a rape trial ends
B) Journalists who never name rape accusers
C) Journalists who name rape suspects as soon as they are charged
D) Journalists who name the accuser when the court acquits a rape suspect

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which one of these does Kittross say is most crucial for the mass media?

A) Truthfulness
B) Balance
C) Objectivity
D) Credibility

Answer 2

D

Question 3

All of these are components of fairness, except ...

A) Ignorance
B) Impartiality
C) Keeping an open mind
D) Suspending judgment until valid decisions can be made

Answer 3

A

Question 4

Which one of these statements fits best with Kittross' assertion that "when authority divides, responsibilities multiply"?

A) Truth is not a sufficient criterion for ethical information.
B) Media, sources and audience are all responsible the dissemination of ethical information.
C) The media are obligated to be gatekeepers.
D) Audience members are responsible for seeking diverse information.

Question 5

All of these are among the Black-Steele-Barney criteria for ethical use of deceptive news gathering, except ...

A) All the non-deceptive alternatives must be tried first or rejected as unlikely to succeed.
B) The types of deception and their rationale must be revealed to the audience.
C) The story must be reported as soon as possible, meeting all deadlines and beating all of the competition.
D) The benefit from the story's ends must outweigh the harm from its means.

Question 6

Which one of these is most essential to the media, according to Gordon?

A) Economic success and independence
B) Accuracy
C) Fairness
D) Truth

Question 7

What do journalists crucially need to maintain while dealing with sources who seek to manipulate them?

A) Autonomy
B) Objectivity
C) Balance
D) Symbiosis

Question 8

Gordon blames all of these for occasionally manipulating the media, except ...

A) Corporate PR executives
B) The Society of Professional Journalists
C) Grassroots public relations efforts
D) Technology that expands the media's news hole and tightens deadlines

Question 9

Who is mainly responsible for the "informational cocoon"?

A) Advertisers
B) Audience members
C) Public relations professionals
D) Journalists

Question 10

All of these concepts are "in the same family" as truth, except ...

A) Accuracy
B) Fairness
C) Subjectivity
D) Reliability

Question 11

All of these concepts are "in the same family" as truth, except ...

A) Accuracy
B) Fairness
C) Subjectivity
D) Reliability