Law, Ethics and News Literacy

Legal and ethical standards are treated as non-negotiable within Arlingtonian. One of Arlingtonian’s expectations is proper photo attribution. Every image included in print or online must include photo courtesy or original credit, so that our publication respects copyright laws. This practice is emphasized early and applied across the staff.

At the start of the school year, I revisited the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Code of Ethics. In class, we discussed how these principles apply to student journalism, including things like accuracy, fairness, independence, and minimizing harm. To make it easier for staff to access and reference, I placed a full copy of the SPJ Code of Ethics in our shared Google Drive and hung printed copies throughout the newsroom.

Photos of the SPJ Code of Ethics hung around the newsroom.

Ethical conflicts were not a frequent occurrence within our newsroom. However, an instance in January 2026 led us to approaching this concern with careful consideration.

While reporting on a story involving a student connected to an ICE-related topic, a source requested that details about her workplace be withheld due to personal safety concerns. I recognized the potential for unintended harm and honored the request.

My commitment to news literacy also extends beyond the high school newsroom. As a middle school student at Jones Middle School, my exposure to writing was largely limited to academic assignments, and I had no awareness of Arlingtonian or student journalism. With the help of my two community liaison managers, this year we were fortunate enough to speak to all 8th and 7th graders, educating them on the importance of journalism, bringing copies of Arlingtonian for them to read, and answering questions. While I loved speaking about journalism and the importance of news literacy to these young adults, the most rewarding part was when the teachers emailed me to collaborate with them on writing. 

Arlingtonian staff is currently working on educating a handful of Jones Middle School students on the difference between writing for an English class and writing for a newsmagazine and helping them with the process of creating a news story. We are hoping to publish their stories on our website in early spring.

Community liaison Evelyn Lundquist(left), me (center) and community liaison Eva Smith (right) presenting to Jones Middle School 7th and 8th grade classes on journalism and Arlingtonian.