No doubt many also remember the live broadcast of the opening of gangster Al Capone's safe. The Society of Professional Journalists supports personal and network ethics in journalism. In America we celebrate free speech as one of our Constitutional rights. News bureaus, broadcast networks and individual journalists report on the truth as they see it and find it, with no fear of government reprisal or monitoring. Countless others have faced death threats.
American journalism enjoys unparalleled freedom.
But with that freedom comes enormous responsibility. Rosenberg's point was that a respected former insider to broadcast journalism sees such an erosion of television news standards that perhaps nothing can turn it around. When Westin researched his book, Best Practices for Television Journalists , written for the Freedom Forum , he came to realize just how bad the situation has become. Westin's ultimate fear is that as journalism standards erode, so will public support for press freedoms under the First Amendment. This is what we expect from a broadcast network.