Republic of the Philippines

Department of Education
MIMAROPA Region
Schools Division of Oriental Mindoro
Doroteo S. Mendoza Sr. Memorial National High School
Pagkakaisa, Naujan

LECTURE #2
DISCIPLINE AND IDEAS IN APPLIED SOCIAL SCENCE
LESSON PROFESSIONALS AND PRACTITIONERS IN COMMUNICATION
DIRECTIONS: Read the following lecture then answer the activities.

Roles of Communicators and Journalists

The foremost important role of communicators and journalists is to make available information and evidence to
inform the public about issues that matter to them in the most neutral way possible. They provide facts to the
public to form a judgement and decisions. In some cases, they facilitate accurate processing and analysis of such facts
in a professional and ethical way.

Functions of Communicators and Journalists

Their functions include: to collect and document information, facts and opinions, and present them for public analysis
and deepening to the root of reality. To communicate is to deliver truth and facts. Professional communicators and
journalists are at the service of truth. They gather news, facts, and information that are critical to public life and well-
being. The functions include being present where the news is happening and having the ability to record what is
happening accurately with available technology.

Competence of Communicators and Journalists

The competencies of the communicators and journalists are along their delivery of roles and functions. They need to
have listening, reading, writing and speaking skills. Listening, reading, writing data and information-gathering skills
are necessary for communication as tools. Poor writing and speaking skills can distort the message regardless of the
good intentions of the communicator.

Accurate A journalist has a service to the media prescribing public to make sure that the news they report is
accurate. Other laws are in place to make sure that journalists do not impose upon court trials such as contempt of
court.

Unbiased Further to accuracy, journalists should ensure that their news writing is unbiased and presents the basic
facts for their audience to determine their own set of judgement. Any opinions should be in the form of attributed
quotes and a good journalist will show both sides of the story.

A political Journalists should be nonpartisan or have no political affiliation. Hence, they are free from political
pressures or influences in making news reports and in making judgements.
Plain English To help with the readability and accessibility of their news stories, journalists should ensure that their
writing meets the style of their specific publication and editor. Further to this, writing should be in plain English and
without jargon. This is especially important in writing stories from court cases, council meetings and police
statements.
Public Interest The final area journalists wish to explore is public and human interest. For their ethical
responsibilities, journalists are encouraged to write interesting news as that is what really sells newspapers. Public
interest is the Holy Grail for journalists and ideally all stories they write would draw a large amount of it. Public
interest can be used as a defense when journalists go a little too far out of their way to obtain a story. For example, if
a journalist goes against the Communications code of conduct, but it can be said that the story holds a significant
amount of public interest, they may well escape unscathed. However, it is easy to question the ethical consequences of
these actions.

Specific Work Areas of Communicators and Journalists work

The discipline of communication deals with how humans use verbal and non-verbal messages to create
meaning in various contexts. Degree programs in communications and journalism introduce students to mass
communication theory and the uses of media to tell stories, persuade people, sell products and promote ideas.
Students receive in-depth instruction in writing, speaking and editing techniques for a variety of media and
take courses in media law and ethics, news writing and reporting, multimedia production and strategic
communications. Students may gain hands-on experience by producing content for campus television and radio
stations, writing for a college newspaper or completing internships at commercial media outlets.
Communication and journalism, it is possible to pursue a career as a broadcast news analyst, reporter, or
advertising manager. A degree in this field instructs students about how to use mass media to communicate with an
audience, and that training makes communication and journalism students ideal candidates for these careers.

DOROTEO S. MENDOZA SR. MEMORIAL NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

Pagkakaisa, Naujan, Oriental Mindoro| 5204
0977-804-2765 | 0950-077-9750
[email protected] |[email protected]
 Communicators and journalists can work in a number of areas of specialization: speech writing and taking
minutes of a meeting; advertising, marketing, and sales; communication education; electronic media, radio, television,
and broadcasting; public relations; journalism; theater, performing arts; public communication and opinion
management; and international relations management and negotiations.
The specialization can be in copy writing, production directing; professional, blogging, communication
education, language arts coordination, forensic and debate coaching, drama directing, film and tape librarian, news
editing, news directing, news writing, news anchoring, transmitter engineering, and technical directing. As journalists,
they can also specialize in field reporting, news editing, news casting, author, copywriting, script writing, publishing,
news service research, technical writing, acquisition editing, interviewing.

RIGHTS, RESPONSIBILITIES AND ACCOUNTABILITIES OF A COMMUNICATOR

AND A JOURNALIST
During the 21st century, we cannot deny the fact that the media has become so powerful. We even branded
media as the watchdog of the community. They can easily influence people positively or negatively. Most of the time we
tend to depend on the information they give us every day and they have become the source of knowledge, pleasure,
advertising, political and economic information and even entertainment.
Thus, the rights and responsibilities as well as the accountabilities of communicators and journalists must
be established to safeguard the integrity of the media and the protection of the public.
The rights and responsibilities of a communicator and journalist emanates from the right of the people to
freedom of information and freedom of expression as tantamount provided for by the Constitution and other national
and international laws.

What are the rights, responsibilities and accountabilities of a communicator and a journalist?
Right as defined is a power or privilege to which one is entitled to, legally speaking, these are a collection of
entitlements which a person may have and which are protected by law, such as the right to information, freedom of
expression, freedom of the press, freedom to choose and any other rights that people have something to claim. On the
other hand, responsibilities are something that one has to carry out our duties to be observed. Example, it is the
responsibility of a communicator and a journalist to ensure that citizens have convenient access to all media which is
subject to just and fair law and the universally accepted principles of the human rights.
Generally, a right is an entitlement and a responsibility is an obligation or a duty. In exercising your right, you
always remember that a responsibility is always there beside it to make such right ethical, proper and legal. Along
with the right and responsibility of a communicator and a journalist is the so-called accountability. Accountability is
the quality or state of being accountable or answerable. It is an obligation of an individual to take account of certain
activities and accept the blame for whatever it may cost. Hence, this signifies that a journalist should always ensure
that what he is giving or sharing is honest, truthful and always with respect to human rights because he is
responsible for his own actions. There are certain things that a journalist and a communicator should always take
note every time they communicate to the public such as the law on plagiarism, copyright, libel, oral defamation and
other general media laws and regulatory frameworks that they must comply with. Accountability is a necessity for
communicators and journalists to keep them fair and balance with the information they are giving. The rights,
responsibilities and accountabilities of the communicators and journalist must be given full merit and special
protection because of the role they are holding, that is to give a truthful and reliable information to the public. Also, as
part of their duties they should ensure that citizens are able to grasp content and contribute to media content, and
not just remain as passive consumers of media output. There are respective codes of conduct and official laws and
rules that regulate these media. Here are some constitutional rights of the journalist in which their rights,
responsibilities and accountabilities originate.
1. Freedom of speech, expression and of press (Section 4, Article III of the Philippine Constitution).
2. The Right to privacy of communication and correspondence (Section 3, Article III of the Philippine Constitution).
3. The right of the people to information on matters of public concerns (Section 7, Article III of the Philippine
Constitution).
Furthermore, Article 19 of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (UDHR) guarantees the right to
freedom of expression in the following terms: “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right
includes the right to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through
any media and regardless of frontiers.”
Also, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), a treaty ratified by more than 150
states, including the Philippines, imposes formal obligations on State to respect and elaborate the rights of journalist.
Article 19 of the ICCPR guarantees the right of freedom of expression in terms very similar to those found in the
UDHR;
1. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of opinion.
2. Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and
impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art
or through any other media of his choice.

What are the Social Responsibilities of Journalist?

1. Without a free market place the press is responsible.
2. All should have an access to the press.
3. Controlled by community opinion and ethics.
4. Can’t violate people’s right.
5. Press should be free, comprehensive and objective.

DOROTEO S. MENDOZA SR. MEMORIAL NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

Pagkakaisa, Naujan, Oriental Mindoro| 5204
0977-804-2765 | 0950-077-9750
[email protected] |[email protected]
The Code of Ethics, according to Sampa (2017) as in any professional group, is the most fundamental point of
reference of how the practitioner must conduct himself/herself so as not to be branded as engaging in a malpractice.
It is as well the basis of either an ethical or an unethical conduct. With this in view, communicators could better
perform their duties and understand their accountabilities. News casting or news writing could be accurate, fair and
reliable when communicators adhere to the ethical standards of their practice and this would also benefit their
audiences and clientele in terms of the information delivered to them. In this module, I shall be providing you with a
consolidated version of the principles of the ethical conduct of communicators, and they are as follows:
1. Honesty. This refers to the communicator being honest with his work/s, his actions and utterances. Equipped
with such, the communicator is able to win the respect of his audience.
2. Communication of accurate information. The practitioner does not fabricate articles written in broadsheets,
tabloids, newspapers and the like or delivers news items with truthfulness.
3. Obedience to the laws of the land and to public policy. The communications practitioner is not above the law.
4. Valuation of confidential information and not use such for personal interest. What is confidential must not be
divulged to the audience of communication, particularly if it holds with it a threat to national security and territorial
integrity.
5. Supportive of the ideals of the freedoms of speech, expression and of the press. However, the journalist or the
broad caster/newscaster abides by the truth that no freedom is absolute.
6. Sensitivity to the audience and clientele of communications. The communicator must know his audience so as
not to be prejudiced against them.
7. Cognizance of the endeavour of other people, where and when necessary. He/she gives credit to where credit is
due.
8. Incorruptibility. A communicator does not accept bribe of any form in exchange of an article or news item. And,
the practitioner does not use his/her status to influence other people.
9. Loyalty. The communications practitioner knows no label of a turncoat.
10.Positivity of tone. The voice, literally, of the tone of the article of a communicator gets through his/her audience,
thus the practitioner must always take on a positive tone.
11.Acknowledgement of error or mistake committed. Nobody is infallible, so is a communications practitioner.

The 5 Principles of Ethical Journalism

The core principles of ethical journalism set out below provide an excellent base for everyone who aspires to launch
themselves into the public information sphere to show responsibility in how they use information. There are hundreds
of codes of conduct, charters and statements made by media and professional groups outlining the principles, values
and obligations of the craft of journalism. Most focus on five common themes:
1. Truth and Accuracy Journalists cannot always guarantee ‘truth’, but getting the facts right is the cardinal
principle of journalism. We should always strive for accuracy, give all the relevant facts we have and ensure that they
have been checked. When we cannot corroborate information we should say so.
2. Independence Journalists must be independent voices; we should not act, formally or informally, on behalf of
special interests whether political, corporate or cultural. We should declare to our editors – or the audience – any of
our political affiliations, financial arrangements or other personal information that might constitute a conflict of
interest.
3. Fairness and Impartiality Most stories have at least two sides. While there is no obligation to present every side in
every piece, stories should be balanced and add context. Objectivity is not always possible, and may not always be
desirable (in the face for example of brutality or inhumanity), but impartial reporting builds trust and confidence.
4. Humanity Journalists should do no harm. What we publish or broadcast may be hurtful, but we should be aware
of the impact of our words and images on the lives of others.
5. Accountability A sure sign of professionalism and responsible journalism is the ability to hold ourselves
accountable. When we commit errors we must correct them and our expressions of regret must be sincere not cynical.
We listen to the concerns of our audience. We may not change what readers write or say but we will always provide
remedies when we are unfair.

DOROTEO S. MENDOZA SR. MEMORIAL NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

Pagkakaisa, Naujan, Oriental Mindoro| 5204
0977-804-2765 | 0950-077-9750
[email protected] |[email protected]
Must – Not – Do! by a Journalists
1. Protecting Sources To a journalist, sources are sacred. Ethical reporters will go to great lengths to cultivate and
protect sources for the sake of preserving their access and integrity. Some journalists have even risked jail time rather
than identify a source such as a government whistleblower or corporate leak. There may be times as a journalist that
you have to weigh the promise of anonymity against other factors, including the newsworthiness and credibility of
your story or even questions about the source’s own motives and reliability.
2. Protecting Victims Another basic rule you’ll encounter in newsrooms is that certain victims of crimes are not
identified by name – particularly when the victim is a child who may have been sexually abused. There are cases,
however, when these rules are bent or broken. What if the accuser is a public figure? What if the abuse is incidental to
a larger story such as the recovery of a kidnapping victim? You may face these kinds of dilemmas when a victim’s
right to privacy confronts the news value in play.
3. Privacy vs. News Value This kind of dilemma isn’t limited to situations like those above. In general, public figures
like government officials and celebrities enjoy a lesser degree of privacy than average citizens. How do you know when
a matter is too private to report on? What if an ordinary citizen is involved in a genuinely newsworthy story, but
reporting on it may require the disclosure of compromising information? Journalists and editors often work together to
balance an obligation to accurately report the news while also doing no harm.
4. Conflicts of Interest One of the pillars of journalism ethics is impartiality. News stories should be reported fairly,
objectively, and without undisclosed conflicts of interest that could influence the reporter’s coverage. What if you’re
assigned to a story about someone you have an existing personal relationship with, whether it’s positive or negative?
How should a newsroom cover alleged misconduct by a major advertiser? What if the publisher’s ownership structure
encompasses other newsworthy individuals or companies that you ought to report on? Should a reporter participate
directly in an event that he or she is going to write about later? These are all questions you are likely to face if you
pursue a career as a journalist.
5. Audience as Customer With some exceptions, journalism today is a business first and a profession second. Like
any other business, the rules of demand apply. A news outlet’s audience is usually its customer base too, so how
much of an obligation does an outlet have to produce the kind of stories people want as opposed to news the public
needs? At what point does running popular stories undermine a news organization’s commitment to meaningful
reporting? A publication or broadcast outlet is only as strong as its audience, but reporters also have to remember
that journalism plays a unique role in society that most other businesses do not – and act accordingly. These are just
a few of the ethical dilemmas you could encounter in your career in the field of journalism. What’s key is
understanding where the ethical boundaries lie and how to stay on the right side of them, even when it might be
easier not to. Doing otherwise ultimately can harm not only your career, but also the profession itself.

DOROTEO S. MENDOZA SR. MEMORIAL NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

Pagkakaisa, Naujan, Oriental Mindoro| 5204
0977-804-2765 | 0950-077-9750
[email protected] |[email protected]
 ACTIVITY SHEET #2
DISCIPLINE AND IDEAS IN APPLIED SOCIAL SCIENCE

LESSON: PROFESSIONALS AND PRACTITIONERS IN COMMUNICATION

DIRECTIONS: Do the following activities at home during the scheduled time. Submit this every Thursday. Make sure
that the answer that you will present on the day of your submission is ORIGINAL and NOT a COPY OF FROM YOUR
CLASSMATES nor IT SHOULDN’T BE PLAGIARIZED FROM GOOGLE because if so, you’re going to have to repeat it
again and again. So, please think and comprehend the lesson from the discussion so you can come up with your
OWN answer.

ROLES, FUNCTIONS AND COMPETENCIES OF COMMUNICATORS AND

JOURNALISTS
ACTIVITY #1: Breaking News (Recorded Video Reporting)
You are to choose any of the breaking news. Prepare your news segment by recording yourself doing the news
segment.
1. A hurricane is due to pass over the country next 4. The bank has been robbed and is closed until further
week. You’ve been told to report about it. Prepare your notice. People can’t
news segment. withdraw, change or deposit money. It’s chaos. You are
 Where will it strike? to report the story.
 How strong will the winds blow?  When did it happen?
 What is the category of the hurricane?  How did it happen? How many robbers were there?
 What is the government saying?  Was there anyone hurt?
 What should people do?  What’s happening in town?
 Do you have any advice on how to stay safe?  When will it reopen?
2. A murder has happened in a quiet neighborhood.  What else is happening?
You’re on duty to report the case on the news. Prepare 5. The government has voted to stop funding students’
your news segment. stipends. Students are angry and there are protests
 What happened? When did it happen? outside the parliament.
 Who was murdered?  What can you say?
 What is the police saying?  What is going on?
 What are the residents saying?  What are people saying?
 Are they scared?  Is it getting dangerous and violent, or is it peaceful?
 Is the killer still at large?  Has the government made any statement yet?
3. You are going to interview Coco Martin/Angel Locsin 6. A deadly virus has been discovered and has infected
tonight. Prepare your people nationwide. Give your news segment on it.
questions and ask them to the actor/actress.  Where did it start?
 What new film is he/she in?  Do you know how it is transmitted yet?
 What does he/she like to do?  Has anyone died? How many?
 What is his/her upcoming film?  Is it spreading fast? What are the symptoms?
 What other questions would you like to ask them?  What was being done to control it?
 Find out more about what their future holds.  What can be done to stay safe?
 Any last advice?

SPECIFIC WORK AREAS OF COMMUNICATORS AND JOURNALISTS WORK

ACTIVITY #1: Think-and-Write
Go online and search for renowned local and international communicators and journalists. Choose one local and one
international practitioner in the field of communication and read up their biographies, especially in terms of their
career paths. Answer the following questions:
1. How did they develop their professional practice?
2. What are their roles and functions in the society?
3. Do you see yourself in the same career path? Explain?

Use the following template in a short bondpaper:

Name of your chosen Local/International Communicator and Journalist:_________________________________________
Brief explanation about him/her:
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
Question#1:_________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Question#2: _________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Question#3: _________________________________________________________________________________________________________

DOROTEO S. MENDOZA SR. MEMORIAL NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

Pagkakaisa, Naujan, Oriental Mindoro| 5204
0977-804-2765 | 0950-077-9750
[email protected] |[email protected]
 RIGHTS, RESPONSIBILITIES AND ACCOUNTABILITIES OF A COMMUNICATOR
AND A JOURNALIST
ACTIVITY #1: NEWSPAPER CLIPART
Read and analyze. Cut a newspaper/magazine clip showing proof or manifestation of an exercise of rights and
responsibilities of communicators and journalists. Paste the cut picture/article then writes a brief
explanation/description of the picture/article. Use a separate sheet for your answer.

Paste your picture here

Explanation:

ETHICAL AND UNETHICAL BEHAVIOR OF COMMUNICATION PRACTITIONERS

ACTIVITY #1: DO’S and DON’Ts
Give at least three dos’ and don’ts’ of a good journalists and justify your answers based from the principles, values
and code of ethics of communication practitioners specifically the journalists

DOROTEO S. MENDOZA SR. MEMORIAL NATIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

Pagkakaisa, Naujan, Oriental Mindoro| 5204
0977-804-2765 | 0950-077-9750
[email protected] |[email protected]