Journalism and activist democratic theory and ethics

When the ‘chilling effects’ of libel can lose effect

Bibliographic Data

ID7477220
AuthorsAli Noor Mohamed (0000-0001-6193-9669, United Arab Emirates University, United Arab Emirates, corresponding author)
Year2018
Volume21
Issue9
Pages1212-1228
Publication date2018-08-29
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournalism (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1464-8849 • E-ISSN: 1741-3001
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/1464884918796583
OpenAlexW2889388802
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited33

We use the events of the civil rights movement of the 1960s as context in exploring deployment of ethical principles associated with activist democratic theory by New York Times editors. The ethical framework helped shape coverage of perceived injustices against minorities and set the tenor of confrontation with public officials. Subscription to activist journalism ethics assumes a lack of fairness in liberal democratic processes that take place within unequal social, economic, and political environments. These media tend to challenge the status quo more vigorously than do other media. A content analysis shows that the Times pursued the civil rights story with an activist zeal that got it entangled in the historic Sullivan libel lawsuit of 1960. The paper did not scale back its tone in challenging the social order in the South – even in the face of physical intimidation of reporters and in spite of the widely assumed ‘chilling effects’ of libel. This suggests that when media cover certain issues in an activist spirit, conventional restraints engendered by fear of libel may lose effect

Context (archaeology · Democracy · Face (sociological concept · Freedom of the press · Journalism · Lawsuit · Media studies · Political science · Politics · Social science · Sociology · Status quo · Media Studies and Communication · Rhetoric and Communication Studies · Social Media and Politics · Law

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