According to the Oxford Dictionary, ethics has to do with what is right, fair, equitable, accountable, and dutiful (Ward 7). Ethics has an implied meaning in media. It is understood as a series of principles governing the journalists towards unbiased and objective reporting. In media, ethical practice is vital as it has a huge impact on the general public. The media industry has decades acted as the public watchdog for the past few. It has been labeled the mouthpiece of the underprivileged. Informed and decisive reporting is what is expected of it (Black and Roberts 2). But it has consistently failed to honor this privilege. It has adopted varied principles that barely define media ethics. This paper will attempt to explore what media ethics is all about and what makes a story unethical. Ethical Values Literally, ethical values deal with right conduct and good life or simply a good work ethic. Impliedly, ethical values are a set of principles that govern virtuous behavior. Media ethics cuts across the entire media industry, including the Internet. Though the Internet is a bit complex as far as ethics are concerned, it has not been spared of the chaos either (Plaisance 2-4). Governments across the globe read from the same script on the set standards for all media houses. Some of these ethics are truthfulness, conflict of interest, sensationalism, and authenticity, and confidence, invasion of privacy, and appropriateness of the pictures. Truthfulness Literally, truthfulness denotes the quality of being honest and open. Impliedly, media houses are only credible and unbiased if they are reporting accurate and verified news to avoid legal confrontation, loss of confidence, and a drop in the market share. Despite this conventional wisdom, newspapers, radios, and televisions find themselves in danger of reporting rumors and misleading the public (Pattyn 3-5). There are a number of cases that are associated with insincere reporting. A case in point is the story published in the News Week in 2005 alleging that an American interrogator flushed a Koran down a toilet (Kurtz par. 2-4). This incidence captured the Muslim community by a storm of protests that occurred in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Indonesia, among other Muslim countries, causing the death of sixteen people. Conflict of interest Literally, conflict of interest is a situation that can easily undermine the independence of a person as a result of the likely clash between the self-interest and public interest or even professional interest. Impliedly, in media, the organization may at times take issues with the stories some of their journalists cover (Pollock 251). Stories that can damage the reputation of the company are nullified before they get published or aired. Editors, on the other hand, are warned on the kind of stories to publish. These cases are some of the ethical dilemmas that journalists face in the course of their careers (Pattyn 3). Sensationalism Literally, sensationalism is basically creating a public hype. Impliedly, in mass media, it is all about presenting stories in a manner that provokes public excitement or interest, at the cost of accuracy. News organizations sometimes focus on less important stories to trigger a positive reaction from their audience. Such stories are only mea