What's especially interesting is the precipitous drop of the percentage of journalists who feel that these roles are ''extremely'' important. It could be that journalists are less sure generally about the role newspapers play, or should play, in the broadest sense. The survey tested a few other conceptions of newspapers' functions, to see if other priorities have emerged. Cover community and neighborhood news'' garners either ''extremely important'' or ''very important'' ratings from 78 percent of the sample - about equal to the watchdog items. The survey also tested support for the idea of segmenting coverage into news of interest to specific groups within the readership - ''customized'' or ''niche'' reporting.
Journalists seem to prefer the traditional, broader appeal.
The item ''Concentrate on information that is of interest to the widest possible public'' wins ''very important'' or ''extremely important'' ratings from 65 percent. The survey explored one hypothetical ethics scenario in detail. The results will be examined, also in detail, elsewhere in a forthcoming report, but the basic conclusion is that journalists seem to have no qualms about reporting on a politician's personal past. You call the mayor, who confirms the story, but asks that you not write it up. Your source has given the same documents to three other news outlets in your city.