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Dear Coach,
I was working on a local angle to a statewide story and my editor told me: “Just stick in these background paragraphs from The Associated Press story, and that’ll take care of the statewide scope.” Here’s my question: Isn’t that plagiarism? -- No Copy Cat
Dear No Copy,
This is a great question and timely as newspapers today are paying lots of attention to plagiarism, quote fudging, source inventing, dateline lifting and anything that could question the credibility of a journalist’s work.
The key here is “credibility“-- the bond of trust that readers have with their newspapers. Without it, newspapers are sunk.
Plagiarism, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica Online, is “The act of taking the writings of another person and passing them off as one's own.” Plagiary, the definition continues, “is closely related to forgery and piracy practices generally in violation of copyright laws. If only thoughts are duplicated, expressed in different words, there is no breach of contract.”
Worthwhile sidelight: The word plagiary comes from the Latin word for “kidnapper.”
The Internet, of course, has ushered in new plagiary pitfalls. When we read Web sites for background and find information we want to use or remember, we often download the page or cut and paste the passage for future reference. Then that block of copy easily can get folded into the morass of notes, transcribed interviews and reminders that inform the stories we write.
Quick tip: Always keep your site downloads and cut-and-pasted information in a separate folder with clear referencing to site addresses.
In the case of inserting Associated Press (or New York Times or Gannett News Service or Reuters) background paragraphs in your story, the safest habit would be to clearly attribute. For example, you could write:
“There have been 20 other cases throughout the state, according to an Associated Press report.” Then either quote from the AP story or paraphrase, adding the attribution “the AP reported.”
Is that going overboard with attribution, especially when member newspapers rely on wire services for background and context and pay for the services? Maybe. But these days, you can’t be too careful -- or too credible.
Related
Work habits that prevent plagiarism
Ethics begins with the basics
Resources
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