Summer Media Internship

At the end of the day online blogs and print articles usually take the same course. There is an idea for a story and the journalist takes the necessary means to develop the story and present it to their reader. Therefore all ethical standards set up by the news organization should be followed. There are lawyers that give legal advice to newsrooms about any tricky issues that may be legally controversial. Applying what I learned in a Media Ethics class (which I think every student should take) the information shared on the blog was not public fact nor was it in public domain. Therefore the average Joe would not have access to this information. Although it was a mere snapshot, and blogs are usually in nature a small insight and commentary of a topic, when it comes to the deceased people are usually sensitive.
There is even an Act in law that protects the owner or writer of a blog for being held responsible for any information that is added by a third party. Kilgannon in some respects did intrude on a private space. It would have been wise for him to consult the family members of the Jones to avoid any conflicts.
Also Kilaganon is not writing for the National Inquirer, but the New York Times. Most news organizations like the Times have pages and online information on their journalistic standards. In fact it is also encourged for the journalist to seek legal advice, when an ethical matter arises.