Ethical reasoning in editorial decision-making
The Editorial Question is a visual notebook about ethical decision-making in journalism.
Every week, I pair an original photograph with one question about a decision journalists and editors have to make: what to verify, what to include, what to leave out, when to publish, how to communicate uncertainty, when anonymity is justified, how to minimise harm, and what the public interest actually requires.
I don't provide the “right” ethical answer. The point is to bring editorial judgment into focus and encourage examination and reflection on the decisions behind the work.
If you are a journalist, I hope these questions create a small moment to stop and examine the choices we make every day, often quickly and under pressure. Ethical journalism does not happen because we have good intentions. It happens through all the decisions we make... from the questions we ask and the evidence we use, to the language we choose, the context we provide, the people we include and the things we decide not to publish...
If you are part of the audience, I hope these questions offer another way of looking at journalism: not simply at the finished story, but at some of the decisions behind it. You don't need to be a journalist to wonder why something was included, omitted, emphasised or qualified. Sometimes a story raises questions that are difficult to put into words. How was this claim verified? What context shaped the decision? Why was this language used? What considerations informed the headline, the framing or the treatment of privacy? These are part of the everyday work of journalism.
I aim to contribute to collective analysis and critical engagement, and to a better understanding of how editorial decisions are made.
The photographs are simply things I notice: moments, objects, places and details from ordinary life. They don't necessarily illustrate the question. They are another form of observation.
One photograph. One editorial decision. One question worth considering.
Every week.