ethics policy

Ethics & Professional Standards Guidelines
The MBJabal News Group is committed to the highest ethical standards.

Fairness and accuracy are among our core values. But perhaps nothing stands above the need for the news organization to maintain and preserve its integrity. The public’s trust in our work — our most important asset — depends on it.

This evolving document is meant to provide general guidance to MBJabal News staffers on the many difficult ethical questions that arise in the course of doing our jobs. But because not every situation can be anticipated, it is useful to keep two particular guidelines in mind.

المبادئ التوجيهية للأخلاقيات والمعايير المهنية
تلتزم مجموعة MBJabal News Group بأعلى المعايير الأخلاقية

العدل والدقة من بين قيمنا الأساسية. ولكن ربما لا يوجد شيء فوق الحاجة إلى أن تحافظ المؤسسة الإخبارية على سلامتها وتحافظ عليها. ثقة الجمهور في عملنا – أهم أصولنا – تعتمد عليها

تهدف هذه الوثيقة المتطورة إلى تقديم إرشادات عامة لموظفي MBJabal News حول العديد من الأسئلة الأخلاقية الصعبة

التي تنشأ أثناء أداء وظائفنا. ولكن نظرًا لأنه لا يمكن توقع كل موقف ، فمن المفيد وضع مبدأين توجيهيين محددين في الاعتبار

1) None of us should act in ways that could damage the organization’s credibility. Many complicated issues — from political involvement to attribution to freelance policy — can be navigated easily with that principle in mind.

2) Any situation that raises questions of credibility ought to be discussed with a ranking (masthead) editor. None of us should decide such issues alone.

We are all collectively responsible for ethical standards. Any employee who is aware that a fellow staff member has committed ethical violations should immediately bring the matter to the attention of a ranking editor.

لا ينبغي لأي منا أن يتصرف بطرق قد تضر بمصداقية المنظمة. يمكن التعامل مع العديد من القضايا المعقدة – من المشاركة السياسية إلى الإسناد إلى سياسة العمل المستقل – بسهولة مع وضع هذا المبدأ في الاعتبار

يجب مناقشة أي موقف يثير تساؤلات حول المصداقية مع محرر التصنيف (إعلان التسمية الرئيسية). لا ينبغي لأي منا أن يقرر مثل هذه القضايا بمفرده

نحن جميعًا مسؤولون بشكل جماعي عن المعايير الأخلاقية. يجب على أي موظف يدرك أن أحد زملائه الموظف قد ارتكب انتهاكات أخلاقية يجب أن يلفت انتباه محرر الترتيب على الفور إلى الأمر

معاذ بن جبل الأخباري
معاذ بن جبل الأخباري

Professional Activities and Standards
Fairness, Accuracy and Corrections
The MBJabal News Group strives to operate with fairness, accuracy and independence.

Whenever possible, the MBJabal News Group seeks opposing views and solicits responses from those whose conduct is questioned in news stories.

While it is our responsibility to accurately report the news we know, and as soon as possible after breaking the news, we should update what we can from an opposing side or more background. If the opposing side can’t be reached, we should say that. We should also foster a spirit of fairness in the tone of our coverage. An opposing side shouldn’t necessarily be expected to provide cogent and thoughtful responses to complex issues instantaneously. Developing stories must indicate they will continue to be updated with “More to come” or similar phrasing.

We must strive to create balance in all of our coverage with a sense of immediacy.

All errors shall be acknowledged promptly in a straightforward manner, never disguised or glossed over in a follow-up story. Only in rare circumstances, with approval from the Executive Editor, should an attempt be made to remove erroneous content (or content published inadvertently) from the web. When errors are made online, we should correct the errors and indicate that the story has been updated to correct an error or clarify what it says. We always acknowledge our mistakes and set the record straight in a transparent manner.

Clarifications should be made when a story, photograph, video, caption, editorial, etc. creates a false impression of fact.

A correction or clarification should repeat the original error only if omitting that information fails to provide necessary context for understanding the correction/clarification. was incorrectly spelled in a story about the MBJabal News Group” is sufficient in print. It is not necessary to repeat the original error. Corrections/clarifications should be appended to the original story online and be located in a consistent place in print.

When there is a question over whether a correction, clarification or removal of story or photo is necessary, bring the matter to an editor.

Reporters or photographers ought to identify themselves to news sources. In the rare instance when circumstances suggest not identifying ourselves, the Executive Editor or appropriate senior editor must be consulted for approval.

Journalists must not plagiarize, whether it is the wholesale lifting of someone else’s writing, or the publication of a press release as news without attribution. MBJabal News journalists are responsible for their research, just as they are for their reporting. The inadvertent publication of another’s work does not excuse the plagiarism. Plagiarism will result in

الأنشطة والمعايير المهنية
الإنصاف والدقة والتصحيحات
تسعى مجموعة MBJabal News Group جاهدة للعمل بنزاهة ودقة واستقلالية.

كلما كان ذلك ممكنًا ، تسعى مجموعة MBJabal News Group إلى الحصول على آراء متعارضة وتطلب ردودًا من أولئك الذين يتم التشكيك في سلوكهم في القصص الإخبارية.

في حين أنه من مسؤوليتنا الإبلاغ بدقة عن الأخبار التي نعرفها ، وفي أسرع وقت ممكن بعد نشر الأخبار ، يجب علينا تحديث ما يمكننا من جانب معارض أو خلفية أخرى. إذا لم يكن من الممكن الوصول إلى الطرف الآخر ، يجب أن نقول ذلك. يجب علينا أيضًا تعزيز روح الإنصاف في نغمة تغطيتنا. لا ينبغي بالضرورة أن يُتوقع من الجانب الآخر أن يقدم ردودًا مقنعة ومدروسة على القضايا المعقدة على الفور. يجب أن تشير القصص المتطورة إلى أنها ستستمر في التحديث بعبارة “المزيد في المستقبل” أو صياغة مشابهة.

يجب أن نسعى جاهدين لخلق توازن في جميع تغطيتنا مع الشعور الفوري.

يجب الاعتراف بجميع الأخطاء على الفور وبطريقة مباشرة ، ولا يتم إخفاؤها أو إخفاءها في قصة متابعة. فقط في حالات نادرة ، بموافقة المحرر التنفيذي ، يجب محاولة إزالة المحتوى الخاطئ (أو المحتوى المنشور عن غير قصد) من الويب. عند ارتكاب أخطاء عبر الإنترنت ، يجب علينا تصحيح الأخطاء والإشارة إلى أنه تم تحديث القصة لتصحيح خطأ أو توضيح ما تقوله. نعترف دائمًا بأخطائنا ونضع الأمور في نصابها بطريقة شفافة.

يجب تقديم التوضيحات عندما تخلق القصة أو الصورة الفوتوغرافية أو الفيديو أو التعليق أو الافتتاحية ، إلخ ، انطباعًا خاطئًا عن الحقيقة.

يجب أن يكرر التصحيح أو التوضيح الخطأ الأصلي فقط إذا فشل حذف تلك المعلومات في توفير السياق الضروري لفهم التصحيح / التوضيح. تم تهجئته بشكل غير صحيح في قصة حول MBJabal News Group ”كافية في الطباعة. ليس من الضروري تكرار الخطأ الأصلي. يجب إرفاق التصحيحات / التوضيحات بالقصة الأصلية على الإنترنت ووضعها في مكان ثابت في الطباعة.

عندما يكون هناك سؤال حول ما إذا كان التصحيح أو التوضيح أو إزالة القصة أو الصورة ضروريًا ، فقم بإحضار الأمر إلى محرر.

يجب على المراسلين أو المصورين تعريف أنفسهم لمصادر الأخبار. في الحالات النادرة التي تقترح فيها الظروف عدم تحديد هويتنا ، يجب استشارة المحرر التنفيذي أو محرر أول مناسب للموافقة عليه.

يجب على الصحفيين عدم السرقة الأدبية ، سواء كان ذلك بسبب الرفع بالجملة لكتابات شخص آخر ، أو نشر بيان صحفي كأخبار بدون إسناد. صحفيو MBJabal News مسؤولون عن أبحاثهم ، تمامًا كما هم مسؤولون عن تقاريرهم. النشر غير المقصود لعمل شخص آخر لا يعفي الانتحال. سينتج عن الانتحال

While journalists are expected to cover breaking news aggressively, they must not interfere with civil authorities while on assignment. In no circumstance should a journalist break the law. Journalists who feel they have been unlawfully restricted from doing their job are expected to remain calm and professional and report the situation to a ranking editor immediately.

Confidentiality and Unidentified Sources
Agreements about anonymity should be ironed out with sources in advance. Make sure sources understand the ground rules: What information can be attributed to the source and what can not be attributed? What is off-the-record, meaning what information cannot be published unless confirmed through another source.

In general, we should avoid the use of unnamed sources in stories. We will attribute information to unnamed sources only when news value warrants and it cannot be obtained any other way.

When we choose to rely on unnamed sources, we will avoid letting them be the sole basis for any story. We will not allow unnamed sources to make personal attacks. We should describe the unnamed source in as much detail as possible to indicate the source’s credibility. And we should tell readers the reason the source requested or was given anonymity.

A reporter must identify any unnamed source to his or her editor and the editor must ask for the identity of any unnamed source used in the story. The use of unnamed sources is subject to approval by the Executive Editor.

To the extent possible, we should apply our own standards to the use of unnamed sources in stories produced by other newspapers or wire services. In cases where there are significant conflicts between the attribution of information in the wire story and the Southern California News Group policy on unattributed sources, an effort should be made to contact the originating news agency for more information.

Under no circumstance does the Southern California News Group pay for information.

Use of Names / Descriptions
When law enforcement or other officials identify a person who has been arrested, that person can be identified by MBJabal Newsoutlets. In some instances, a person might not be named until charged.

Juveniles should not be identified unless they are to be tried as adults, or their alleged crime is deemed particularly newsworthy. Such a decision should be made in consultation with an editor.

Once a person is named in our reporting, MBJabal News should make every effort to report on the ultimate adjudication of the case.

MBJabal News generally does not name victims of sexual assaults.

Physical descriptions of suspects should be published only if they are of sufficient specificity that they can be useful in identification.

Social Media Identities / Use
Social media accounts should be clearly branded with the name of the news organization, either at the local level or with Southern California News Group.

An employee of MBJabal News should refrain from endorsing entities in which they cover or have direct contact. Retweets, sharing of posts or “+1” indicators do not constitute endorsements.

Official MBJabal News social media profiles should clearly and prominently indicate the account is representative of our news organization.

MBJabal News journalists are expected to maintain professional decorum on their personal and work social media accounts, just as they would be expected to conduct themselves professionally when representing the news organization in public. Journalists should be cognizant of their language, the opinions expressed, visual material presented, and how their posts may be perceived by the public. Foremost, they should remain cognizant of the public nature of social media.

They should consider themselves a representative of the company in all public interactions.

MBJabal News employees should always source the information they are pushing out via social media. If they are not the original source, they need to make sure that they reference who/what that source is.

MBJabal News employees will not delete incorrect posts; instead, they will follow similar guidelines set up for online and print corrections, indicating they had previously published incorrect information when posting the correct information.

For media that now allow editing, e.g., facebook, we should correct the error and include an UPDATED at the beginning of the post. A comment should also appear in the post, identifying that an update/fix has been made.
For Twitter, a reply to the initial post with the accurate information is the best way to keep the content linked and visible.
MBJabal News journalists are allowed to break news