Low-Stakes Decisions and High-Stakes Dilemmas: Considering the Ethics Decision-Making of Freelance Magazine Journalists

ABSTRACT

Freelance journalists face many of the same ethical dilemmas as journalists working in newsrooms. Because they work independently for various organizations, however, they may develop different strategies for making ethical decisions. This study used in-depth interviews with freelance magazine journalists (N = 14) to explore how they define ethical dilemmas, the types of ethical questions they face, and the individual and organizational influences guiding their decision-making. The study sheds light on the normative frameworks guiding ethical deliberations among this group of journalists, particularly in the context of magazine journalism.