Technologies, Ethics and Journalism’s Relationship with the Public
Drones can provide a bird’s eye view of breaking news and events that can be streamed live or used in edited news coverage. Past research has focused on the training and ethics of journalists and drone operators. Little attention, however, has been given to audiences and their acceptance and percept...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Cogitatio
2020-07-01
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| Series: | Media and Communication |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/3039 |
| _version_ | 1818173630667816960 |
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| author | Megan Duncan Kathleen Bartzen Culver |
| author_facet | Megan Duncan Kathleen Bartzen Culver |
| author_sort | Megan Duncan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Drones can provide a bird’s eye view of breaking news and events that can be streamed live or used in edited news coverage. Past research has focused on the training and ethics of journalists and drone operators. Little attention, however, has been given to audiences and their acceptance and perception of ethics. We suggest that audiences who are open to personal technology use will perceive news media using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as more ethical in an extension of the Diffusion of Innovation Theory. In a survey (N = 548) of adults living in the United States, we explore the correlates between trust, technology, privacy, and the use of UAVs. Results suggest all three are positively correlated with openness toward drone journalism. We find the audience has preferences for the types of news stories that should be covered using drones. Participants indicated they welcome drone journalism when covering traffic and investigative stories, but not celebrities and politicians. The findings have implications for newsrooms, suggesting transparency and outreach to educate people on the technology could help build trust. Further, the results suggest that Diffusion of Innovation theory can be applied when mediated through news media. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T19:31:34Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-47ece838221842ac8f98452329058786 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2183-2439 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T19:31:34Z |
| publishDate | 2020-07-01 |
| publisher | Cogitatio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Media and Communication |
| spelling | doaj.art-47ece838221842ac8f984523290587862022-12-22T00:53:15ZengCogitatioMedia and Communication2183-24392020-07-018310111110.17645/mac.v8i3.30391555Technologies, Ethics and Journalism’s Relationship with the PublicMegan Duncan0Kathleen Bartzen Culver1Department of Communication, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, USASchool of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Wisconsin, USADrones can provide a bird’s eye view of breaking news and events that can be streamed live or used in edited news coverage. Past research has focused on the training and ethics of journalists and drone operators. Little attention, however, has been given to audiences and their acceptance and perception of ethics. We suggest that audiences who are open to personal technology use will perceive news media using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as more ethical in an extension of the Diffusion of Innovation Theory. In a survey (N = 548) of adults living in the United States, we explore the correlates between trust, technology, privacy, and the use of UAVs. Results suggest all three are positively correlated with openness toward drone journalism. We find the audience has preferences for the types of news stories that should be covered using drones. Participants indicated they welcome drone journalism when covering traffic and investigative stories, but not celebrities and politicians. The findings have implications for newsrooms, suggesting transparency and outreach to educate people on the technology could help build trust. Further, the results suggest that Diffusion of Innovation theory can be applied when mediated through news media.https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/3039dronesinnovationjournalismnews audiencesunmanned aerial vehicles |
| spellingShingle | Megan Duncan Kathleen Bartzen Culver Technologies, Ethics and Journalism’s Relationship with the Public Media and Communication drones innovation journalism news audiences unmanned aerial vehicles |
| title | Technologies, Ethics and Journalism’s Relationship with the Public |
| title_full | Technologies, Ethics and Journalism’s Relationship with the Public |
| title_fullStr | Technologies, Ethics and Journalism’s Relationship with the Public |
| title_full_unstemmed | Technologies, Ethics and Journalism’s Relationship with the Public |
| title_short | Technologies, Ethics and Journalism’s Relationship with the Public |
| title_sort | technologies ethics and journalism s relationship with the public |
| topic | drones innovation journalism news audiences unmanned aerial vehicles |
| url | https://www.cogitatiopress.com/mediaandcommunication/article/view/3039 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT meganduncan technologiesethicsandjournalismsrelationshipwiththepublic AT kathleenbartzenculver technologiesethicsandjournalismsrelationshipwiththepublic |