VISUAL ETHICS VisualEthicsaddressestheneedforcriticalthinkingandethicalbehavioramongprofessionalsresponsible for visual messages in photography and photojournalism, film, and digital media. From the author of Photojournalism: An Ethical Approach, published more than 20 years ago, this book goes beyond photo- journalism ethics. It discusses crucial contemporary concerns, including persuasion, stereotyping, global perspectives, graphic design decisions, multimedia production, social media, and more. Written for an ever-growing discipline, authors Paul Martin Lester, Stephanie A. Martin, and Martin Smith-Rodden giveseriousethicalconsideration tothecomplexfield ofvisual communication. Paul Martin Lester is a Clinical Professor for the School of Arts, Technology, and Emerging Commu- nicationattheUniversityofTexasatDallas.HereceivedaBachelorofJournalismfromtheUniversityof TexasatAustin,anM.A.fromtheUniversityofMinnesota,andaPh.D.fromIndianaUniversity.Heisthe author or editor of several books that include: Visual Communication: Images with Messages, Seventh Edition (2017),DigitalInnovationsforMassCommunications:EngagingtheUser(2014),ImagesthatInjure:PictorialStereo- typesintheMedia,ThirdEditionwithSusanRoss(2011),VisualJournalism:AGuideforNewMediaProfessionals withChristopherHarris(2002),DesktopComputingWorkbook:AGuideforUsing15ProgramsinMacintoshand WindowsFormats(1996)andPhotojournalism:AnEthicalApproach(1991).From2006until2011hewaseditor oftheVisualCommunicationQuarterly,apublicationoftheVisualCommunicationDivisionoftheAssociation for Educators in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) published by Taylor and Francis. From 2011until2015hewaseditoroftheAEJMCpublicationJournalismandCommunicationMonographspublished by Sage. He also co-wrote a monthly column, “Ethics Matters” for News Photographer magazine for the NationalPressPhotographersAssociation(NPPA). Stephanie A. Martin is an Assistant Professor of political communication in the Division of Corporate CommunicationandPublicAffairsatSouthernMethodistUniversity.SheiseditorofColumnstoCharacters: ThePresidencyandthePressEntertheDigitalAge(TexasA&MPress).HerworkhasalsoappearedinRhetoric& PublicAffairsandVisualCommunicationQuarterly,aswellasinbookchaptersinseveraleditedvolumes.Martin’s researchcentersonpublicrhetoric,particularlywithregardtotheAmericanpresidency,popularconservative movements,andrightstodissentinthepublicsphere.Shehasalsowrittenabouthatespeechandtheethicsof silencing.MartinholdsaPh.D.inCommunicationfromtheUniversityofCalifornia,SanDiegoandanM.A. inJournalismfromtheS.I.NewhouseSchoolofPublicCommunicationatSyracuseUniversity.Herexpert commentaryhasbeenfeaturedinthenationalmedia,includingNPR,theChristianScienceMonitor,theCon- gressionalQuarterlyResearcher,andtheOrangeCountyRegister. MartinSmith-RoddenisanAssistantProfessorforJournalismandthecoordinatorofthePhotojournalism SequenceatBallStateUniversity,locatedinMuncie,Indiana.HeholdsaPhDinAppliedPsychologicalSci- enceandaMasterofScienceinExperimentalPsychologyfromOldDominionUniversity(Norfolk,VA).For morethanthreedecadeshe’sbeenaphotojournalist,photoeditorandteamleader,aswellasbeingacognitive psychologist.He’sworkedintheBaltimore/Washington,SanAntonio(Texas)andNorfolk(Virginia)metro areas.In2011hewasnamedPhotoEditoroftheYearbytheNationalPressPhotographersAssociation’sBest ofPhotojournalismcompetition.HewasalsoRegion3(mid-Atlantic)PhotographeroftheYearin1996. This page intentionally left blank VISUAL ETHICS A Guide for Photographers, Journalists, and Filmmakers Paul Martin Lester with Stephanie A. Martin and Martin Smith-Rodden Firstpublished2018 byRoutledge 711ThirdAvenue,NewYork,NY10017 andbyRoutledge 2ParkSquare,MiltonPark,Abingdon,OxonOX144RN RoutledgeisanimprintoftheTaylor&FrancisGroup,aninformabusiness ©2018Taylor&Francis TherightofPaulMartinLestertobeidentifiedastheauthorofthisworkhasbeenassertedby himinaccordancewithsections77and78oftheCopyright,DesignsandPatentsAct1988. Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookmaybereprintedorreproducedorutilizedinany formorbyanyelectronic,mechanical,orothermeans,nowknownorhereafterinvented, includingphotocopyingandrecording,orinanyinformationstorageorretrievalsystem, withoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublishers. Trademarknotice:Productorcorporatenamesmaybetrademarksorregisteredtrademarks,and areusedonlyforidentificationandexplanationwithoutintenttoinfringe. LibraryofCongressCataloginginPublicationData Acatalogrecordhasbeenrequestedforthisbook ISBN:978-1-138-21049-3(hbk) ISBN:978-1-138-21050-9(pbk) ISBN:978-1-315-45513-6(ebk) TypesetinBembo byTaylor&FrancisBooks CONTENTS Foreword viii Preface: Welcome to Your Personal Ethical Journey x Acknowledgments xiv 1 Ethical Issues and Analytical Procedures 1 What is Ethics? 2 Five Areas of Ethical Concern 3 The Systematic Ethical Analysis (SEA) 6 The Ten-Step SEA 7 SEA Analysis by Nikky Farinas 11 Annotated Sources 14 2 Visual Reporting 18 Victims of Violence 19 Rights to Privacy 22 Subject and Image Manipulations 24 Case Studies 27 Annotated Sources 28 3 Documentary and Advocacy 32 Journalism Values 33 The Myth of Objectivity 34 Case Studies 37 Annotated Sources 38 4 Citizen Journalism 41 Awards Signify Credibility 42 Professionalism Typifies Credibility 47 Case Studies 48 Annotated Sources 49 vi Contents 5 Advertising and Public Relations 52 Values Exemplified: The TARES Test 53 Advertising Stereotypes 56 Public Relations Manipulations 57 Back to TARES 59 Case Studies 59 Annotated Sources 61 6 Typography and Graphic Design 63 Johannes Gutenberg and the Birth of Typography 64 Inspiration vs. Appropriation 65 Balancing Loyalties 68 Case Studies 69 Annotated Sources 70 7 Informational Graphics and Cartoons 73 Ethics and Infographics 75 Ethics and Cartoons 77 Case Studies 80 Annotated Sources 81 8 Screened Media 84 Size Matters 85 Case Studies 90 Annotated Sources 91 9 Mixed and Virtual Reality 93 The Future of News 96 Ethical Considerations 98 Case Studies 99 Annotated Sources 101 10 Social Media 103 The Web and Social Revolution 105 The Rise of Fake News 106 Concerns with Public Commentary 109 Case Studies 111 Annotated Sources 112 11 Editing Challenges 115 Why End with Editing 116 The Ethics of Image Selection 119 Case Studies 121 Annotated Sources 123 Contents vii Conclusion: Let Empathy Be Your Guide 125 Appendix A: Interviews with Professionals 131 Appendix B: The 10-Step Systematic Ethical Analysis 166 Appendix C: Case Studies Using the Ten-Step SEA 168 Index 174 FOREWORD Paul Martin Lester Visual ethics is, of course, the reason why this book was written, but its hidden agenda is more complex. Although the ethical issues related to collecting, processing, and presenting visual messages in all manner of media and a seemingly unlimited number of purposes is important and, quite frankly, overdue, the actual purpose of this work is to teach critical thinking. Through practice using the 10-step Systematic Ethical Analysis (SEA) for how to best analyze ethical slights of the past and present, you should learn how to respond in positive ways to dilemmas presented to you in the future – both professional and personal. YourgoalwiththeSEAistomovefromagut-feeling,highlyindividualized,short-term,and subjective reaction to a rational, collective, long-term, and less subjective outcome (I won’t write “objective” for obvious reasons after you read Chapter 3). That way, you should come to the conclusion that any dilemma does not have one correct and one wrong solution. The SEA is designed to get you neck-deep in the murky waters of a tricky situation and realize that there are several types of boats – from a homemade raft to a Viking River Cruise ship (notice: A blatant plug) – that will get you safely to shore. (How’s that for a salient metaphor?) In other words, there are many viable and positive alternatives to a dilemma that can be imagined after some careful consideration and a little creativity. The chapters include discussions on important media issues from advertising to virtual reality. The main topics addressed in this book include credibility, objectivity, role-related responsibilities, values, loyalties, etiquette, empathy, and yes, ethics. Interviews with profes- sionals conducted and written by Dr. Martin Smith-Rodden can be found in Appendix A. Those of you who are observant should, I trust, notice that it seems odd that a book that starts with “visual” does not have a single published illustration. Arguably, ethics is a subject that relies more on words than images. And yet, there are more than 300 illustrations described by words. At the end of each chapter are the sources that provide examples, addi- tional context, and information. These images – still and moving – should be of interest to anyone committed to visual communication. This book also includes case studies where you can practice using the SEA (with the SEA form found in Appendix B, completed analyses and case studies using the SEA in Appendix C) and annotated sources that provide academic perspectives both written by Dr. Stephanie A. Martin. Finally, it should be clear that the study of ethics is a highly personal exercise. Thinking about what others did wrong and determining alternatives that should be taken inevitably Foreword ix leads to you questioning and considering your own past actions both positive and negative. Tothat end, you will nodoubtnoticethat thestyleofwritingis perhaps abitmore informal than other textbooks. There are personal pronouns, contractions, cuss words, and par- enthetical phrases – all elements that I caution my students to avoid in their term papers. Simply put, if you find yourself in one of my classes, you will know that this book’s tone matches my conversational style. Reading this book, then, should feel like a conversation. I hope someday we get a chance to make that happen. Online only, please.