Ethical Challenges Posed by Online Media to Journalism: Case of the Zambian Watchdog

Abstract

Online news media have spurred new concerns for a new ethics for online-journalism.  Many online news media are unregulated and often cross the line in their reporting negating journalism ethics as practiced in the mainstream media. Questions that arise given the ethical challenges of online-journalism are whether online new media are exempt for ethical standards practiced in society or whether they require a new and different sets of ethics specific for online media.  How do online media managers, editors and journalists approach their practice in relation to upholding journalistic integrity?  This paper seeks to address these ethical issues by way of a case study with the Zambian Watchdog.  Through critical analysis and speculation, the paper provides suggestions that online news managers, editors and journalists would apply if they were to be considered ethically astute.   Keywords: Ethics, online news media, online-journalists, ethical challenges, safe-guard, journalistic integrity, the Zambian Watchdog.