We often discuss the ethics of medical experimentation. However, there are ethics involving human health beyond just the simple experimentation. Many do not have direct access to most studies in order to learn about the progress that has been made. The same holds true for scientific journal articles that can be very important to an individual’s health. The great majority of the population relies on journalists to honestly relay this information to them in terms they can understand.
But what happens when this is lost in translation? A famous case of this is a 1990’s story by Gina Kolata in which she speaks of a possible cancer cure. The study to which she refers, in which a cure for cancer had been found in mice, had been published months before and there was even a previous New York Times article on the topic. What was her motive for writing the article? Well, at a dinner earlier she overheard Nobel laureate James Watson say, “Judah’s going to cure cancer in two years!” This created a front pages story, where as the original was buried away in the inside of the paper. Her language in combination with the placement of the article seemed to create a rush of people to believe that a cure for cancer had been indeed found.
Was it ethically correct for her to write this article? She must have known that it would be misleading, as did the editors when they put it on the front page of the New York Times, the journalistic standard for the world. She had no incentive to write the story other than financial gain, a front- page story, and ONE new quote. It seems her motives were not sincere, in that she didn’t want to tell the public what they needed to know but instead chose to mislead them for her own gain. She even received a million dollar book deal on the topic. So my question is, do journalists, as simple “translators” have a moral responsibility that is unique to them, as doctors and researchers do? I personally do believe so.
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I agree with your view that journalists have a moral responsibility to relay accurate and honest information to the public. However, I also believe that every individual has a moral code by which he or she should abide. But as the incidence with the reporter suggests, it is often not the case that individuals choose to abide by what is “morally” right.
If everyone has their own set of moral responsibilities, then what is the key question? I would argue that the important issue is whether or not the journalist should be held legally accountable for misleading the public. Physicians and researchers are held accountable for any actions that may affect the patient or subject’s health. Does the same apply for other professionals?
Theoretically, if one person can be proved to have inflicted harm upon another person, they are then held legally accountable for their actions. So then one must define the meaning of “inflicting harm”. Does this “harm” include psychological injury as well? One could argue that the journalist’s actions inflicted psychological pain upon terminal cancer patients by providing them with false hopes that were then destroyed when the truth was revealed. However, as terrible as whatever negative consequences the journalist’s actions had on the general public, by our current laws she is free to speak and express whatever opinions she may have.
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