This year (2012), the Poynter Kent State Media Ethics Workshop takes on political coverage – a frequent trigger of reporting and online responses that add more heat than light. The JA is excited to partner with <a href="http://www.journalismaccelerator.com/resources/the-poynter-institute/" rel="nofollow">Poynter</a>, Kent State, <a href="http://www.journalismaccelerator.com/resources/the-civic-commons/" rel="nofollow">The Civic Commons</a> and participants at this year’s workshop to kickoff a new ethics best practices guide to political coverage.

We’re starting right here: asking for examples of reporting you've done or seen that raised ethical issues - including civility, accuracy, transparency (in reporting, social media and in campaigning). <a href="http://www.ethics.org.au/living-ethics/politics-ethics-and-role-media" rel="nofollow">This 20-year-old column</a>, focused on Australian politics, asserts a theory worth considering in political coverage today: "The media can have a very positive effect on the motivation of politicians who are struggling to improve the standard of their conduct." Should we? And if so, how?
