NBC'S "STING" ETHICS QUESTIONED

Some journalists are questioning NBC News's ethics following its acknowledgment that it paid the organization Perverted Justice at least $100,000 to set up a pedophile sting operation in Ohio for a Dateline NBC feature. The operation was the fourth of its kind staged by the magazine show, in which Perverted Justice members pose as juveniles to lure potential pedophiles to a local house, where they are confronted by Dateline correspondent Chris Hansen in front of hidden cameras and are then arrested when Hansen's "interview" concludes. In an interview with the Associated Press, Bob Steele, who teaches journalism ethics at the Poynter Institute in Florida, remarked, "If the journalist was paying someone for their information, cooperation and participation, the payment may taint the reliability of the story and the truth being sought. ... Credibility is affected. Some would even put the term 'checkbook journalism' on this matter." However, David Corvo, executive producer of the program, insisted that Perverted Justice was working as an NBC consultant on the program. "We think the system we set up has allowed us to keep our journalistic standards as well as perform a public service," Corvo said. Today's (Tuesday) Washington Post also noted that in the Ohio sting, Perverted Justice members were deputized by the local sheriff. Lucy Dalglish, executive director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, told the newspaper that she had never heard of a media outlet using paid associates to act as law-enforcement officials. "It sounds to me like a very risky thing to do," she added.

11/04/2006