Ethics of Facebook friendship: Can it really be a conflict?

October 6, 2008 by Kurt
Filed under: general 

I read this piece from the American Journalism Review and tagged it on my Delicious account…but I thought it was interesting enough to delve into in more detail. The question it poses in its headline: “To Friend or Not to Friend? Should reporters befriend their sources via social media?”

I’ll offer my answer right up front: Why not?

The relatively brief item from the October/November 2008 issue includes a number of anecdotes from journalists on either side of the issue. It leads off with…

When Debra Bowen, California’s secretary of state, sent Sacramento Bee columnist Stuart Leavenworth a friend request on Facebook, he was faced with a decision. If he accepted, would he have trouble keeping a professional distance from his source, or would he simply be trudging on the same trails reporters always have? Does becoming friends on social media sites change the reporter-source relationship?

And the story correctly notes that newsrooms haven’t really given much consideration (or guidance) on the issue yet. Some reporters quoted in the piece expressed discomfort with the idea of “friending” a source (who might see too much of their personal information). Or, they said, they would be concerned about the possibility of a taint by association with the political or social views of their “friends.”

I was more compelled by the quote from Craig Whitney, standards editor at the New York Times:

Basically what it comes down to is we believe that being a friend on Facebook, and I speak as one who has a Facebook page, is essentially meaningless, and everybody knows that. So it’s hard to imagine any real conflict of interest that could arise from your being a friend of somebody on Facebook and writing about that person.

His wording may be a little too strong. It isn’t exactly meaningless. I have a number of good friends — real friends — who are also Facebook friends. But, just as in the real world, my Facebook network extends beyond my close friends.

In the “real world,” I know a lot of people, many of whom have been my sources as a reporter. With many of them, I wouldn’t hesitate to call them up to brainstorm a story idea, grab a cup of coffee or ask how their kids are doing.

Sources aren’t ATM machines for quotes. They’re part of the reporter’s network — and that’s what sites such as Facebook are about, right? Building, maintaining, being involved in a network?

My friends are the ones I’d call in an emergency, I’d hug when they get terrible news or I’d invite to my house for beer and chili on Super Bowl Sunday. My social network extends beyond that — both in the real world, on my Facebook profile and beyond.

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  • I've seen newsroom people joining Facebook groups relating to political issues. Friending on Facebook is one thing, waving electronic bumper stickers is another.
  • suzyjax
    SocialMedia websites are more/less dynamic business cards. If we believe this, then basically we are saying that the reporter has the business card of the SOS. Who would object to that?
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