The CAJ’s ethics advisory committee considers and provides advice on ethical issues faced by journalists through the course of their regular work. Members are appointed by the CAJ’s national board of directors, and the chair or co-chairs are appointed by the board from among the committee’s members.

The committee’s current members are:

  • Patricia Elliott — University of Regina and First Nations University of Canada
  • Iris Fischer — Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
  • Brian Hastings — Humber College
  • Nadia Kidwai — CBC Manitoba
  • Anita Li — The Green Line
  • Pat Perkel — National NewsMedia Council
  • Nebal Snan — Freelance
  • Terra Tailleur — University of King’s College
  • Karen Unland — Taproot Publishing

The committee’s work is found in the following list of policies, discussion papers, and reports on key journalism issues.

CAJ Ethics Guidelines

The CAJ’s widely cited Ethics Guidelines are intended to help both seasoned professionals and new journalists to hold themselves accountable for professional work. While many specific questions are considered here, it is impossible to capture all potential scenarios in a document such as this. Instead, it seeks to provide examples of the application of our general ethical principles, and to help journalists apply those principles and their best judgment when faced with scenarios not covered here.

The CAJ is proud to share that the Ethics Guidelines (linked above) have been updated to reflect changes in the industry since the last version (2011) was published.

See also: Principles for Ethical Journalism

Discussion Papers