HU Symposium Invites Journalist, Professionals to Examine Media Ethics

Hampton, VA - The Hampton University Scripps Howard School of Journalism and Communications’ 33rd Annual Media Symposium will feature nationally acclaimed media giants as featured panelists for a day-long examination of media ethics on April 3. This year’s symposium theme is “Privacy, Security and Conflict of Interest: An Ethical Discourse” and the event is free and open to all journalism and communications students, community citizens, journalists and media professionals.

Featured panelists include: Eleanor Clift, contributing editor for Newsweek magazine; Les Payne, Pulitzer Prize winner and syndicated columnist for Newsday; Douglass Alligood, senior vice president, Special Markets for BBDO Advertising; Athelia Knight, assistant director of The Washington Post’s Young Journalists Development Project; Page Crosland, director of communications for DC Primary Care Association; and Peter Eisner, The Washington Post deputy foreign editor.

“Ethical issues related to media coverage of privacy, security and conflict of interest should be of critical importance to us because of the increasing personal data that’s being collected in this country. Most people aren’t aware of what’s going on,” said Doug Smith, HU’s Ethics and Excellence professor of journalism ethics and the event’s co-coordinator. Smith gained notoriety as the sports journalist for USA Today who broke the story that Arthur Ashe, the tennis legend, had AIDS.

Beginning at 9:30 a.m., participants will engage in facilitated discussions about the relationship of media ethics to issues surrounding the U.S. government’s collection of private data on citizens, tradeoffs between security and privacy, the Patriot Act, the balance between secrecy and information, and potential conflicts of interest.

Participants will screen video clips from feature films and television programs that will serve as springboards for facilitated dialogue during the various break-out sessions.

At 7 p.m., an evening forum with the media panelists will be held in the Robert P. Scripps Auditorium. Scripps Howard Endowed Professor of Journalism Jack White will moderate.  The community forum is free and open to the public and is sponsored through a grant from the Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation of Oklahoma City.

For more information, please contact assistant professor Rosalynne Whitaker-Heck at (757) 727-5622 or Doug Smith at (757) 728-6002.