sarah WHAT SHE DOES AND WHY SHE DOES IT
VALUES, MORALS, & ETHICAL DECISIONS
HER PERSONAL ETHICS CODE 2 | THREAD
Editor’s Note Hello there! It’s time to look at something important. Every day there are decisions to be made. Journalists, and others in the media, need to make decisions for themselves and for many others. As for me, I’ve always wanted to work with magazines. Since I was young I’ve had many subscriptions so that I could look at photos, design, and the embarrassing stories in the back of the book. Some things never change. Ohio University has been so good to me and has given me the opportunity to aquire two undergraduate degrees in four years; Informational Graphics Publication Design and Journalism. I hope to dazzle the world with my designs and build my portfolio with some awesome stuff. Now that it is time for me to graduate, I need to get things in order and decide what is important to me and how I would handle working with the media. I need to think about my readers; you all matter so much to me. So here is it! This issue is dedicated to telling you my personal ethics
code. I want to be transparent so that you can trust what I say and see where I’m coming from when I have to make some hard-pressed decisions regarding what will be published. I hope that I can be the best editor, designer, and writer I can be to benefit you. Just because I don’t work in hard news doesn’t mean I don’t have ethical decisions to make. I weigh the pros and cons and always do what’s right for the publication and myself. I respect everyone’s opinions, as I hope you can respect mine. Let us know what you think of this issue by emailing me at sarahblankenship4@ gmail.com and enjoy!
LOVE ALWAYS,
COVER PHOTO TAKEN BY: Calvin Mattheis EDITOR’S LETTER PHOTO TAKEN BY: Kinsey Ball 2 | THREAD SARAH
masthead
thread EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Sarah Blankenship MANAGING EDITOR
Sarah Blankenship DESIGN DIRECTOR Sarah Blankenship
PHOTO EDITOR Sarah Blankenship
CREATIVE DIRECTOR Sarah Blankenship
PHOTO CHIEF Sarah Blankenship
SEAMS EDITOR Sarah Blankenship
VIDEO CHIEF Sarah Blankenship
FEATURES EDITOR Sarah Blankenship
COPY CHIEF Sarah Blankenship
WHO, WHAT, WEAR EDITOR Sarah Blankenship
PUBLIC RELATIONS CHIEF Sarah Blankenship
DIY EDITOR Sarah Blankenship
BUSINESS MANAGER Sarah Blankenship
CAMPUS CASUAL EDITOR Sarah Blankenship
WEB EDITOR Sarah Blankenship
FASHION MONTH COORDINATOR Sarah Blankenship
DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT ASSISTANT Sarah Blankenship
OUTHREADMAG.COM SEBLANKENSHIP.COM | 3
Sarah’s Personal Ethics Code
Decisions, decisions! What I value is behind every choice I make. BY SARAH BLANKENSHIP
D
esigning and editing for magazines probably doesn’t make you think of hard ethical decisions. I still have to decide which photo works best, if I should publish controversial photos, and if headlines will best represent the stories, whether or not they are controversial. We all have to make choices for ourselves and we should always consider how those choices can effect others. I have developed my code from studying the codes of ethics of the Society of Professional Journalists, The Professional Association for Design, and Advertising Design and Graphic Arts. Here’s my code that I have developed; it’s the basis for every decision I make.
4 | THREAD SARAH
code of ethics
RESPONSIBILITY TO THE COMMUNITY AND READERSHIP When I am working for a publication, or even freelancing by myself, I have to consider how my design decisions affect others. 1. I must not knowingly include photos or graphics in my design that would cause harm to someone. 2. In the case that I would write a headline and subhead, I must use headlines that are politically correct and represent the story or material. 3. I must revise my work if information is not correct or timely. 4. I must not design something that harms the environment in any way. 5. I must use clear and concise language in my designs, unless is it for a special style or concept. 6. I must create designs are nondiscriminatory to any person. 7. I must not show any bias over any issue in my designs. 8. I must not work on stories that are factually incorrect. I must only work towards
publishing truth. 9. I must hold myself to a professional standard. 10. I must support the principles of free speech, freedom of assembly, and access to an open marketplace of ideas and shall act accordingly. 11. I must design any project to the best of my ability to benefit the client, readers, and community. RESPONSIBILITY TO OTHER DESIGNERS Just as you shouldn’t copy off of someone else’s paper in class, you shouldn’t copy the designs of others. Designers should work together to made this world a beautiful place; they shouldn’t work against one another. 1. Give credit where it is due. When using material that does not belong to me I must have permission to use it and must give a caption, or make it clear, that the material is not mine. 2. I must not accept any job for a project that already has hired another designer for the
OUTHREADMAG.COM SEBLANKENSHIP.COM | 5
same job. If I want to accept the position, I must contact the other designer first. 3. I must not defame or disrespectfully criticise another designer’s work. 4. I must be objective and balanced when giving constructive criticism. 5. I must support fair and open competition from other designers for work. 6. I must clarify if one of my designs was also created with the help of another designer. 7. I must not compete with another designer by means of unethical inducements. 8. I must judge designers based on their skills and portfolio, not based on their price. 9. I must be professional and flexible when working with other designers on a project. 10. I must give other designers recognition whenever I have the opportunity to. 11. I must make sure other designers working on a project with me hold up their end.
6 | THREAD SARAH
RESPONSIBILITY TO THE CLIENT I have a skill set that someone is paying me to use. I must work for and with this person, group, or company to create something they want. 1. I must write up or sign a contract before working with my client to insure there are deadlines, a form of payment, and a time line for the project. 2. I must provide my portfolio of previous work at my client’s request. 3. I must follow the clients instructions, within reason. If I have something else in mind I can create another version to show along with their requested version on the design. 4. I must not accept instructions from the client if they infringe on any copyrighted materials. 5. I must work in a timely manner to finish designs for my clients according to our agreedupon time line. 6. I must create work that reflects that client in the most
code of ethics
positive way. 7. I must create material without bias for my client. 8. I must listen to the needs of my client. If they need to change deadlines, I must be flexible within reason. 9. I must be honest with my client. 10. I must agree to keep my client’s information confidential if they request it to be. 11. I must not accept a job offer for a project that is a direct competitor of a project I am already designing for. 12. I must not ask for more compensation than what the project is worth. RESPONSIBILITY TO MYSELF I owe it to myself to make sure that I get my fair share when I am creating a design or any material for a client. 1. I must only work for a fee, a royalty, salary or other agreedupon form of compensation. 2. I must not work on any projects that have conflict with anything in this code. 3. I must act in a professional
manner for the reputation of myself and my work. 4. I must not work for a client that will not give credit or recognition when using my work. 5. I must take responsibility for my work. If something is incorrect and is able to be corrected, I need to fix it as soon as possible. 6. I must consider other responsibilities before accepting another job, to not give myself too much work at once. 7. I must take the time to help other developing designers. 8. I must take constructive criticism positively and respectfully. 9. I must not use someone else’s name or label for attention in my designs, unless it is specifically for that person or comapany. 10. I must work for no more and no less than what I am being paid to do. 11. I must always design to the best of my abilities. 12. I must always work to improve my skills.
OUTHREADMAG.COM SEBLANKENSHIP.COM | 7