Shaky anonymous sources: Journalists in the cyber age should shun discredited past practices like anonymous sources and off-the-record backgrounders, which damage public trust. From the Ethics AdviceLine for Journalists archives.
Tag Archives: backgrounders
The Backgrounder Blight
The backgrounder blight: A Washington Post reporter offers an interview “on background.” The Post’s media critic calls that transparency. Are they nuts?
Tech Companies Hide Behind Backgrounders
Tech companies hide behind backgrounders: Silicon Valley tech companies control information using “on backgrounder” briefings, writes Brian Merchant.
“This is a toxic arrangement,” he writes. “The tactic shields tech companies from accountability,” free of risk.
Ethics AdviceLine for Journalists 