The future of ombudsmen and journalism

(Ian Mayes, ombudsman for The Guardian in London, is 2005-2006 president of the Organization of News Ombudsmen.)

By Ian Mayes
The Guardian

I spent some time recently in Madrid at a conference on self-regulation in news organisations, convened by the Federation of Press Associations of Spain (FAPE). Its main purpose was to launch the country’s first nationwide ethical code for newspapers, to listen to practical advice from a panel of members of the Press Complaints Commission of the United Kingdom, and to consider other forms of self-regulation including that of ombudsman.

Some form of self-regulation is considered necessary in more …

Anger management

By Stephen James
Sacramento News & Review

Here today, gone tomorrow: “Some people thought it was on the mark,” said Tony Marcano of his ombudsman column, “and some people thought I was completely out in left field.”

It’s a job with a strange title and duties that inevitably invite animosity and conflict. Ombudsmen handle customer complaints and scrutinize the business that employs them. In the newspaper industry, that often translates into bluntly criticizing the work of reporters, editors and managers, all in plain view of several hundred thousand readers. “Journalists are remarkably defensive people,” explained Jeffrey Dvorkin, National Public Radio …

‘Public Editor’ Daniel Okrent, Recruited After Scandal, Draws Ire of Reporters

By James Bandler
2004 © The Wall Street Journal

When the New York Times decided to hire a “public editor,” it wanted to heal a damaged institution. The Jayson Blair scandal — which began with a reporter’s fabrications and ended with the firing of two top editors — had badly bruised the paper’s credibility. The public editor would scrutinize the Times’s future performance and act as an advocate for readers.

Daniel Okrent, a veteran magazine editor, has been the Times’s public editor for seven months. But instead of bringing calm, the experiment has created fresh tensions within the Times about …

Journalism and patriotism

Bill Kovach, chairman of the Committee of Concerned Journalists, delivered this address at the annual meeting of the Organization of News Ombudsmen on April 30, 2002, at Salt Lake City, Utah.

A lot of very important things came into focus on Sept. 11 last year. Before 9-11 or after 9-11 has become one of those universal markers, a way to date things without explanation, without elaboration.

But for the future of journalism in the public interest, one of the things that occurred on 9-11 was that — for millions of Americans — timely, accurate and abundant information suddenly became important …

A dangerous trend for freedom of the press in Japan

By Takeshi Maezawa
Journal of Communication Studies © 2001

Freedom of the press is threatened in Japan. Ruling parties, administrative authorities and some civil organizations have been eager to suggest legal restrictions for the mass media.

On Oct. 11, 2000, the government’s Committee on the Protection of Personal Data submitted proposed legislation that would authorize the government to regulate newsgathering and reporting.

On Dec. 28, 2000, the Council for the Promotion of Civil Liberties at the Ministry of Justice released an interim report including a recommendation for the restriction of the press freedom on the pretext that an independent organization …

Fairness as a virtue: Is fairness becoming more difficult?

By Bob Giles
Nieman Foundation

I begin with a word of thanks for enabling the Nieman Foundation to be the host of your meeting this week. I am impressed with the serious purpose you bring to your discussions. Listening to your sessions and meeting you has been a valuable learning experience for me.

In sharing some thoughts this morning on fairness, a good starting point is to acknowledge that newspapers that employ ombudsmen are making a clear statement of an intent to be fair. And fairness is one of the many elements that helps build public trust in the newspaper.…

Mike’ll get ya

By David A. Markiewicz
American Journalism Review

Michael Getler has proven to be the toughest ombudsman at the Washington Post in a long time. What’s the impact of a hard-hitting in-house critic on a newspaper?

For a year now, Fridays in the Washington Post newsroom have crackled with a little added anticipation, something apart from the expectation of the next big story and beyond the eagerness of reporters and editors looking forward to the weekend.

The end of the week has also brought the release of the latest “Omb Memo,” a pointed, one- or two-page assessment of the staff’s recent …

Increasingly, newspapers call on ombudsmen to cure what ails them

By Lucia Moses
Editor & Publisher © 2000

Their motto might be, “Journalist, heal thyself!” While their job description varies, and they go by different names – ombudsman, reader representative, or public editor are common ones – their function is essentially the same: to lend an ear to readers and serve as an internal critic. Sometimes, there’s a price to pay, however, for prescribing tough medicine.

Journalists love to probe, and criticize, but are famously thin-skinned themselves, and “ombuds” are in the awkward position of having to criticize their own newspapers – which can mean taking their employers, co-workers, or …

This is a job for… Ombudsman, writer of wrongs!

By Kim Campbell
The Christian Science Monitor © 2000

When The Los Angeles Times published a front-page photo on May 17 of a Colombian mother with a bomb around her neck, it drew fire from readers. How could the Times print such a shocking photo of a woman waiting to die from the device forced on her by guerrillas?

The answer came in a column written by readers’ representative Narda Zacchino, who has been fielding calls and demystifying newspaper practices – like the choosing of Page 1 photos – since her position was created last year.

At a time when …

The 2000 Philip M. Foisie Memorial Lecture

David Broder, political columnist and reporter for The Washington Post, delivered the fifth annual Philip M. Foisie Memorial Lecture on May 22, 2000, at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Montreal. He spoke from notes and his talk was tape-recorded.

A Pulitzer Prize winner for his commentary, Broder arguably is America’s most highly regarded political reporter and columnist, known for his integrity, accuracy and insight. A few years ago a survey of opinion page editors of the country’s 200 largest papers rated him as “best reporter, hardest working, least ideological.” New Yorker magazine described him as “the dean of American political writers.”

His …