Who's a Journalist? Closing in on a Definition

[Commentary] The debate over "who's a journalist" is getting more urgent. Fortunately, the outlines of a definition are becoming clearer. Might some basic ethical tests help in further drawing the lines? These tests could include:

• Is the person's product intended for the general public?
• Is the work creative and analytical rather than a simple relay of raw information?
• Is the reporting based on facts rather than fabrications? Are statistics honest, images unmanipulated, quotations correct?
• Does the product convey multiple points of view? A reporter or columnist who harangues the consumer with only one side of an issue, however, ignoring or distorting what opponents say, is more a polemicist than a journalist.
• Does the person or his organization guard against conflicts of interest that could affect the product? If conflicts are unavoidable, are they publicly acknowledged?
• Does the person reveal his or her identity and contact information?
• Does the person publicly correct errors?

[Thomas Kent works for the Associated Press]