Is plagiarism becoming more common in the Internet age? The motive and opportunity is certainly there: Journalists have easy access to infinite amounts of information online, and reporters in downsized newsrooms are under pressure to produce more stories than ever before, to say nothing of blogposts, columns and so forth.
I asked Roy Peter Clark, a journalism ethics expert at The Poynter Institute, for his take on plagiarism in the Internet age, and how to avoid it.
Q: Just recently two reporters for high-profile news outlets - Zachery Kouwe, a business reporter for The New York Times, and Gerald Posner, a writer for The Daily Beast - resigned amid plagiarism allegations. Do you think it's inevitable that plagiarism will become more common due to greater pressure on writers to produce more articles and blogposts on ever-tighter deadlines?
A:Lack of time is the enemy of responsible judgment. A 24-hour news cycle with more reporters in their chairs than out on the street will lead inevitably to this kind of abuse. I went to Spain a few years ago, and the older journalists there complained about the young ones reporting from their computers. They called it "peer-acy." I didn't understand the word until one reporter took his hand and placed it over his eye like a pirate. "Oh," I said, "Piracy!"
Q:Is it more difficult to avoid plagiarism when there's just so much stuff online that we're all reading and taking in?
A:Two things have changed when it comes to new media technologies and plagiarism: Plagiarism is much easier to commit. And plagiarism is much easier to detect. I believe that all news organization should randomly filter the stories of staffers through the plagiarism detection software. Kind of like urine tests for texts.
Q:Is there ever any legitimate excuse for plagiarizing something?
A:I guess it would be all right to copy a message from Osama Bin Laden and turn it over to the CIA -- but you better damn well attribute it.
Q:How can beginners in journalism avoid plagiarism?
A:There is a linking culture online that is very healthy. When in doubt, link or give credit in the text. I also like to write the primary text, at least the first draft, without reference to the notes. Put your notes aside and type fast. You can always go back and fill in the holes.
