Shattered Glass Study Guide & Activity Log
Part I. Journalistic Integrity.
As you watch the film, look for each of the scenes below. Imagine you are a staffer at The New Republic. How might each of these episodes enhance Glass’s reputation in your eyes?
At a staff meeting, Glass entertains colleagues with a story about how he posed as a behavioral psychologist to investigate talk radio coverage of a Mike Tyson fight.
On a visit to his old high school, Glass tells a class of journalism students, “A great editor defends his writer. Against anyone. He stands up and fights for you.”
When a colleague chides Glass for compromising his career by applying to law school, Glass explains that he has to apply to make his parents happy.
After tearing apart an intern’s story for poor reporting, Glass explains, “This is the New Republic, remember? Nothing slides here. If you don’t have it cold, you don’t turn it in. Ever.”
Journalists are supposed to be good judges of character. That’s why it’s surprising Glass managed to deceive his colleagues for so long. Consider the situations above for a second time; each offers a clue that Glass was not the journalist he appeared to be. Gather these clues and write a paragraph (5-7 sentences) below explaining why Glass’s behavior should have raised questions about his honesty and integrity.
Part II. Ethics
Editors choose to handle ethical situations differently. For each of the following, explain if you agree or disagree with the editor’s actions, explain why, and if you disagree, explain how you would have handled it.
When Kelly receives a letter charging that Glass fabricated his account of a hotel room party during a young conservatives convention, he asks Glass to gather his notes so they can respond. When he learns that Glass did misreport one detail – there was no min-bar in the room, just a rented fridge, according to Glass – Kelly sends him home, satisfied that the story is solid. But once Glass is gone, Kelly calls the hotel to confirm that guests can rent a fridge as Glass has claimed.
When the publisher forces everyone on staff to circle every comma in the last issue, so he can point out what he believes are mistakes, Kelly confronts him. “These people…deserve our thanks, not another one of your world-famous tantrums,” he tells the publisher. “I would resign before I’d allow you to bully them like that again.” Then, hanging up the phone, Kelly announces, “The Great Comma Debate is history.”
After Lane and Glass spend hours in a conference call with Forbes, during which the facts in Glass’ computer hacker story become steadily more and more dubious, Lane sends Glass back to his office and calls the Forbes editor privately to ask that they spare his reporter. “You guys have discovered something that a troubled 25-year-old has done,” he says. “He could be very hurt by what you guys publish.” But when asked if he still stands by the story, Lane answers, off the record, “I’m looking into it…”
Finally convinced that Glass faked every shred of evidence for the facts he reported in his computer hacker story, Lane finds himself confronted by other staff members who feel it would be wrong to fire him. “He doctored his notes,” Lane tells them, “He lied to his editor.” But when they insist that Glass only lied out of panic and needs help, Lane backs down. Instead of firing him, he suspends Glass for two years.
Part III. Reflect on this “cautionary tale.”
How did Shattered Glass change your perspective on the journalistic profession? What did you learn about the relationships between journalistic institutions/publications and the people that work for them and produce them? In the space below, write a least one solid paragraph (5-7 sentences) that explains your answer.
