ABSTRACT
Intramural criticism and accountability have engaged finally the most serious publishers and television news producers. Who is watching the watchdog is still a riddle. The various methods of self-criticism can be gathered together over time and become a strong force in the practice of journalism. A variety of books are published every year by trade houses and university presses on the technology, the jurisprudence, the achievements, and the failures of modern journalism. More and better courses in ethics at journalism schools, internal discussions of ethical dilemmas, and workshops are taking place voluntarily among a variety of press groups. The point to make concerns the pragmatically beneficial fallout from a policy of responsible, accountable journalism. If the not-quite-a-profession called journalism pays too little attention to moral obligations, its young recruits will drift away from ethical judgments because such calculations will appear to be little more than personal opinions without a basis in reliable principles.
