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This clip shows three media figures discussing the ethics of media outlets paying for stories, a practice commonly referred to as 'chequebook journalism’. Mike Willesee, a journalist and current affairs television program host, describes the practice as shabby, saying it can compromise good journalism, but admits that media competition means that his program does sometimes pay for stories. The clip also includes interviews with Nene King, editor-in-chief of Australian Women’s Weekly and editor of Women’s Day, who feels that there is nothing unethical about chequebook journalism, and Grant Vandenberg, editor of the National Enquirer, for whom getting the story is paramount.

Educational value points

• Chequebook journalism refers to the practice whereby a media organisation agrees to pay someone for (generally exclusive) rights to their story. For example, Beaconsfield miners Todd Russell and Brant Webb, who were trapped underground for 14 days in 2006 after a mine collapse, were reportedly paid $2.6 million by the Nine Network for the rights to their story.

• The clip indicates that a journalist may avoid asking difficult questions when interviewees are being paid for their story, conflicting with the journalist’s responsibility to provide the public with an accurate and comprehensive account of events. Media outlets are sometimes willing to pay large amounts for stories in order to maximise ratings, and therefore may want the journalist to portray the interview subject in a particular light, but also emphasise the sensational or dramatic aspects of the story. The journalist may therefore be less likely to ask questions that could embarrass or expose the paid interviewee.

• It is suggested in the clip that chequebook journalism can compromise coverage of a story. When an interview subject signs an exclusive deal with a media outlet, such a deal can allow the interviewee to tell their story in a controlled way, and also prevent other media from testing or scrutinising the accuracy of the story. The paid interviewee may also feel obliged to embellish their story to make it more interesting or sensational.

• The clip indicates that the practice of paying for a story can reward criminals. In some cases convicted or alleged criminals have profited from their crime by selling their story to the media. This practice is widely seen as unethical and in 1987 the Australian Government passed the Proceeds of Crime Act, which enables the Government to confiscate any proceeds or benefits a person derives from committing a crime. However, the media have sometimes circumvented this Act by paying suspects for interviews before charges have been laid. These interviews (if broadcast before the trial) not only benefit the interviewee, but could also influence potential jurors.

• Chequebook journalism appears to be a widespread practice largely associated with tabloid publications, a number of current affairs programs on commercial television, and popular magazines. However, some media outlets, such as the ABC and The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald newspapers, have a policy of not paying for stories, other than covering costs such as travel expenses incurred by the interviewee.

• There are differing opinions in the media industry about the ethics of chequebook journalism. The Australian Press Council believes that, in order to protect the integrity of journalism, media outlets should disclose when specific information in a story has been bought. Another argument is that some people, such as experts who have devoted a career to gathering knowledge, have a right to ask for some form of payment for sharing this information outside the company or organisation that employs them.

This clip starts approximately 9 minutes into the documentary.

This clip shows three media figures discussing the ethics of media outlets paying for stories, a practice commonly referred to as 'chequebook journalism’.

Mike Willesee, a journalist and current affairs television program host, is interviewed.
Interviewer Are there kinds of journalism that you’ve noticed that you just really don’t like?
Mike Chequebook journalism is really shabby, you know. My own program does is from time to time and I don’t have any control over that, but I always oppose it. I can understand why my producers would do that, because they’re under pressure from other programs. If they don’t do it, they do it, then they get the ratings and, you know, management kicks them in the bum because “Why didn’t you get the story?” You know, it’s a commercial marketing exercise and that gets away from journalism. It, chequebook journalism is bad for a lot of reasons. You know, paying crooks money to tell their story is just bad. Rewarding crime. It compromises the interviewer on so many occasions, often because there’s a contract on the interview. There’s a deal done. You don’t ask certain questions. You know, some of the interviews I’ve seen under chequebook journalism have just been pathetic.

Nene King, editor-in-chief of Australian Women’s Weekly and editor of Women’s Day, is interviewed.
Voiceover In this office, chequebook journalism reigns supreme. Nene King is editor-in-chief of the Australian Women’s Weekly and also editor of Woman’s Day. Here, the journalistic jungle may be more perfumed, but it’s just as savage. Right now, Nene and her deputy, Jo Wiles, are searching for the perfect headline.
Nene King But you’ve got amazing pics here, so you’ll have to just sort of…
Jo Wiles What about we stick with the ‘Shocking interview’ and we have ‘Monaco’s playboy prince in amazing orgy’?
Nene Yes. ‘Scoop pics. Monaco’s playboy prince in amazing orgy’. The end of the line is how much you want to pay. It’s not a personal thing, it’s – you know, I was looking at some shots of Diana and her boys just recently, and I pulled out at about £40,000. It’s important to give my readers the best stories, and it doesn’t cost them any more. It comes out of my beloved chairman’s pocket, and I just – that is the way of the world. You don’t get anything for nothing these days, and I don’t have a problem. There’s nothing unethical about paying for a good story. They are providing a service. I want to put it in the magazine. Full stop.

Voiceover Nene King’s empire is part of the much larger empire of Australian Consolidated Press. Just downstairs in ACP headquarters, an even more colourful approach to journalism is being pioneered by Grant Vandenberg, the editor of The National Enquirer. Vandenberg says he’s happy for his reporters to search through private garbage bins in the eternal quest for a marketable story.

Grant Vandenberg, editor of the National Enquirer is also interviewed in his office.
Grant If I went through someone’s garbage bin and didn’t come back with a story, I wouldn’t want to know about it. But if they came back with a story, I still wouldn’t want to know where it came from. It’s a hard world out there. We want to come out with the best story. We don’t want to be second best to anybody, and we’ll go – we’ve got very aggressive – we’ve got all tabloid-trained journalists. We’ve got some All News Limited, tabloid-trained journalists who are very, very good and very aggressive and I’d hate for them to be sort of chasing me because they’ll come up with a story.