DVD release of the program originally produced as part of the telecourse, Media Waves: An Introduction to Mass Communication.

DVD.

"Produced in cooperation with the College Division of the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. and Knowledge TV."

Narrator, David Hartley.

Editors, Anthony Cimino ... et al. ; composer, David Anthony ; instructional writer/advisor, Geoffrey Rubinstein.

Is a political candidate's past personal life fodder for the front page? If a child commits murder, should the offender's name be released? If a CD by a top recording artist has strongly antisocial lyrics, should the record label consider its impact on kids? News professionals and executives from NBC, CBS, Capitol-EMI Records, and Mercury Records speak out about the ethical dilemmas their industries face. The program also examines the case of Janet Cooke, who wrote a Pulitzer Prize-winning but fraudulent story about an 8-year-old heroin addict in 1981. The need for honesty and fairness, the subtle pressure of commercial interests, and the lure of sensationalism are discussed in this investigation of the pressures and circumstances that make up the context of media ethics.