Preamble:  With this document, we aim to contribute to this discussion of ethical media contributions and offer our suggestions. We recognize that media engagement happens through many roles, ranging from professional journalists to members of the public (e.g., influencers, content creators). While the field of journalism is not the area of expertise for all authors of this document (M. Gagnon), we draw upon journalism codes of ethics to inform this discussion. Our suggestions are meant to be considerations for all who engage with and contribute to media in the psychedelic ecosystem (including the authors of this document).

Journalism is considered a form of knowledge production and reproduction of knowledges by others, and it is among the most influential form in modern society (Ekström & Westlund, 2019; Meditsch, 2005). Characteristics include: observations of daily life and immediateness with reality/realities. As a form of knowledge, journalism is inescapably linked to context, always being conditioned by historical and cultural contexts and by those who contribute to its production.

Journalism can (re)produce knowledge that is both valid and useful. At the same time, there is increasing critique of factors that mediate and interfere with how information is created, processed, and presented (e.g., news being presented as a single version of reality). These factors include: the angle of how journalists view the world, the content objectives, workplace organizations, structures & economics, and conflicts of interests (Meditsch, 2005).

Likewise, digital journalism and social media forms impact knowledge production. Where forms like live blogging or “bite sized” news can be used for accurate timely fact checking, clips can be edited to prioritize different framings (e.g., skeptical, entertaining) muddying the distinction between ‘facts’ and ‘opinions’. And, social media platforms that do not hold editorial & legal responsibility for content published by users have become significant avenues to widely distribute both journalistic news (news media) as well as propaganda (“mock news”) (Ekström & Westlund, 2019).

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Knowledge production in media can be manipulated and misled from many directions (Rosner, 2023). The rise of the internet has come with significant power to effortlessly publish misleading, false, and malicious messages, which can then be spread by individuals without realizing the degree of falsehood. This can come from: Distorted satire or parody, false connections, misleading content, false context, imposter (impersonation of genuine- ) content, manipulated content, and fabricated content (Rosner, 2023; Wardle, 2020). As Caulfield (2025) states, the incentive to manipulate information is high, such as financial, economic, political, ideological reasons (e.g., payment through clicks, gaining positive reviews).

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Media and the Psychedelic Landscape 

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The 1960 - 70’s psychedelic landscape shows media coverage’s influence in various political, social, legal realms. Examples include sensational reporting that positioned LSD-related activities as threatening social order which led to political involvement (Dyck, 2011) as well as investigative journalism that publicized covert LSD testing for military purposes (Richert & Dyck, 2020). And, within the contemporary Western psychedelic ecosystem, many voices, practices, and entire knowledge systems have historically been – and continue to be – silenced, subjugated, and exploited by way of legitimation, medicalization, and commodification (Corbin, 2012; Hauskeller et al., 2023).

With 43% of Canadians (in 2023) indicating difficulty in distinguishing between true and false media information (Bilodeau & Khalid, 2024), exposures of racism and hate in the psychedelic community through social media (Labate & Cavnar, 2021), and the harms of distorted perceptions the can come from amplified, small, highly-vocal, non-representative minorities in social media (Robertson et al., 2024) – the need for ethical media engagement is paramount.

Guiding Questions for Engagement and Contribution

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As consumers of media, increasing one’s own media literacy can help to spot misleading information. This includes reflecting on how information is presented and pausing to critically examine the content before sharing. As Caulfield (2025) suggests, recognize that the information ecosystem is not rigged for accuracy and consider content within the larger body of evidence. As Rosner (2023) states, questions that can help with this critical thinking include: who created the content, and when did they create the content? Does the story support the article’s headline and lead paragraph? Whose interests are being served by the article? Are the sources in a conflict of interest, or do they have a vested interest in offering a skewed perspective?

For stories involving numbers, polls, or science results can be misled (by mistake or on purpose) (Rosner, 2023). For example, the pressure for scientists and researchers to “publish or perish” has been exploited to create a market for lower quality journals (prioritizing quick, easy publications with little or no peer review) and predatory journals that appear legitimate (Caulfield, 2025). Critical thinking questions can include (Rosner, 2023): 

Has the study been peer reviewed? 

How big was the sample size? 

Has causation been confused with correlation? 

Is the sample size representative of the population? 

How were people chosen to participate? 

Have the research questions been published – and do they match the wording in the story? 

When did the study or poll happen?

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It is from this background that we aim to contribute to this discussion of ethics and offer suggestions towards ethical media contributions. We recognize the reality of ethical tensions in media. These suggestions are meant to help negotiate these tensions by offering ways to critically reflect and be mindful of the power dynamics of knowledge production. As Speed (2017) described, critically engaging with the politics of knowledge production means understanding that knowledge production has political effects. Informed by Speed (2017), we propose two overarching questions to guide engagement and contribution: What effects will this have over people’s lives? and What are the (stated or implied) shared end-goals that will have use for people’s lives? 

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The references and texts drawn from are listed below.

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Situatedness 

• When safe to do so, writers are invited to situate themselves at the beginning of their article within their bio. This allows the readers to know who you are, what perspectives you bring, and why you are covering the topics you are
  
  • Please see Homan, S. (2023) and Massoud, M. (2022) for more information

• Everyone has biases. Placing known biases and conflicts of interest upfront allows readers to be discerning and critically reflect their interaction with the content
  

• Situate the information of the content and articles. Clearly state if it is an opinion, personal experience, which people or expert(s) were spoken with, which scientific article(s) were used or referenced. Openly tell the readers where the information being offered comes from

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Respect & Humanity 

• Avoid sensationalism 
  
  • RTDNA (2016), p. 1

• Act with sensitivity and restraint when engaging with dangerous and sensitive situations
  
  • RTDNA (2016), p. 1

• Treat people with decency, courtesy, and consideration
  
  • RTDNA (2016), p. 1

• Strive to not distort the character and importance of events. We suggest this can include splicing video/audio/other content out of order for the purpose(s) of editing events or context
  
  • RTDNA (2016), p. 1

• Be aware of the impact of words and images on the lives of others 
  
  • Ethical Journalism Network (2025)

• Ensure that the content or opinion does not contribute to hatred or prejudice, and does not facilitate the spread of discrimination. For example, relating to: social or ethnic origin, race, gender, sexual orientation, language, religion, disability, political origins, and others 
  
  • IFJ (2019) p. 1

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Accountability & Transparency 

• Avoid false balance. Do not present two opposing views as equally supported by evidence and expertise when it is not
  
  • The Canadian Association of Journalists (2023), p. 5

• Include views from a wide cross-section of people, groups, and communities including those who have been historically underrepresented. And, understand that one individual’s (or one group’s) views does not necessarily reflect the experiences of the entire community
  
  • The Canadian Association of Journalists. (2023), p. 6

• Be responsive to questions of fairness posed by the public and readers
  
  • RTDNA (2016), p. 1

• Clearly distinguish news content from opinion(s), advertising, other forms of sponsorship, or propaganda so the reader knows which is which
  
  • RTDNA (2016), p. 1 // IFJ (2019), p. 1 // The Canadian Association of Journalists (2023), p. 5

• Openly state when your own expenses are paid by another organization. Avoid exchanging news coverage for payments, gifts or favours
  
  • The Canadian Association of Journalists. (2023), p. 5 // RTDNA (2016), p. 1

• Openly state any political affiliations, financial arrangements or other personal information that could constitute any conflicts of interest
  
  • Ethical Journalism Network (2025) // The Canadian Association of Journalists (2023), p. 4

• Clearly state advertising, sponsored content, affiliate links and other third-party-driven content. We suggest this to include payment or incentives based on “clicks”
  
  • The Canadian Association of Journalists (2023), p. 5

• Credit sources and ideas, and/or explain anonymization for safety and confidentiality purposes. When sources are unknown, aim to independently corroborate and identify as accurately as possible
  
  • The Canadian Association of Journalists (2023), p. 2

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Integrity & Accuracy 

• Urgency or immediacy does not take precedence over verifying the facts, sources, and offer of replies 
  
  • IFJ (2019), p. 1

• Update and correct content as more relevant and reliable information becomes available 
  
  • RTDNA (2016), p. 1

• Errors and inaccuracies will be unambiguously corrected in an explicit, timely, complete and transparent manner. We recommend placing correction notes at the beginning of article / content to forefront integrity and accuracy 
  
  • RTDNA (2016), p. 1 // IFJ (2019), p. 1

• Avoid deceiving or misrepresenting oneself to the individuals, groups or entities being covered
  
  • RTDNA (2016), p. 1

• Clearly distinguish factual information from commentary or criticism when describing content sources
  
  • IFJ (2019), p.1 

• Avoid infringing on a person’s privacy. We suggest this can include resisting to put individuals in positions where they must defend their actions that are well-known to be in line with legal obligations. For example, refrain from asking healthcare providers to disclose information that is commonly-known to be (legally, professionally, ethically) private and confidential (e.g., patient health information)
  
  • RTDNA (2016), p. 1 // Canadian Medical Association (2017) // Canadian Nurses Protective Society (2021)

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**Among journalistic standards, serious misconduct includes:

• Plagiarism
• Distortion of facts
• Slander, libel, defamation, unfounded accusations
  
  • IFJ (2019), p. 1

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As we navigate the ethical tensions of engaging with media in the psychedelic ecosystem, we welcome feedback and contributions to this discussion.

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Media Organizations & Journalists we have found to follow the above standards:


We invite you to advise on who could be added to this list by submitting feedback at this link.

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Journalistic Codes of Ethics

Ethical Journalism Network. (2025). Our five core principles of ethical journalism. About the EJN. https://ethicaljournalismnetwork.org/who-we-are

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Radio Television Digital News Association | Association de Radio, Télévision et Informations Numériques (RTDNA). (2016). Code of journalistic ethics. RTDNA Canada About Us. https://rtdnacanada.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/2016RTDNA_Code_Poster_EN.pdf

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International Federation of Journalists (IFJ). (2019). The IFJ global charter of ethics for journalists. https://www.ifj.org/fileadmin/user_upload/Global_Charter_of_Ethics_EN.pdf

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The Canadian Association of Journalists. (2023). Ethics guidelines (CAJ Ethics Advisory Committee). https://caj.ca/wp-content/uploads/Ethics-Guidelines-v2023.pdf

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References & Resources 

Bilodeau, H., & Khalid, A. (2024). The spread of misinformation: A multivariate analysis of the relationship between individual characteristics and fact-checking behaviours of Canadians. Statistics Canada. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/22-20-0001/222000012024003-eng.htm

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Canadian Medical Association. (2017). Principles for the protection of patient privacy (p. 6) [CMA Policy]. https://www.cma.ca/sites/default/files/2018-11/PD18-02.pdf

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Canadian Nurses Protective Society. (2021). InfoLAW: Confidentiality of health information. https://cnps.ca/article/confidentiality-of-health-information/

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Caulfield, T. (2025). The certainty illusion: What you don’t know and why it matters. Penguin Random House Publishing.

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Corbin, M. (2012). Tactics of legitimation in the psychedelic sciences: Lessons for feminist sociology of knowledge. American Behavioral Scientist, 56(10), 1413–1433. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764212454422

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Dyck, E. (2011). 6. ‘Just Say Know’: Criminalizing LSD and the Politics of Psychedelic Expertise, 1961–8. In E. Montigny (Ed.), The Real Dope. University of Toronto Press. https://doi.org/10.3138/9781442661851-008

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Ekström, M., & Westlund, O. (2019). Epistemology and journalism. In M. Ekström & O. Westlund, Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Communication. Oxford University Press. https://doi.org/10.1093/acrefore/9780190228613.013.806

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Ethical Journalism Network. (2025). Our five core principles of ethical journalism. About the EJN. https://ethicaljournalismnetwork.org/who-we-are

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Hauskeller, C., Artinian, T., Fiske, A., Schwarz Marin, E., González Romero, O. S., Luna, L. E., Crickmore, J., & Sjöstedt-Hughes, P. (2023). Decolonization is a metaphor towards a different ethic. The case from psychedelic studies. Interdisciplinary Science Reviews, 48(5), 732–751. https://doi.org/10.1080/03080188.2022.2122788

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Homan, S. (2023). Why positioning identity matters in decolonising research and knowledge production: How to write a ‘positionality statement.’ The Equality Institute. https://www.equalityinstitute.org/blog/how-to-write-a-positionality-statement

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International Federation of Journalists. (2019). The IFJ global charter of ethics for journalists. https://www.ifj.org/fileadmin/user_upload/Global_Charter_of_Ethics_EN.pdf

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Labate, B., & Cavnar, C. (Eds.). (2021). Psychedelic justice: Toward a diverse and equitable psychedelic culture. SyngergeticPress.

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Massoud, M. F. (2022). The price of positionality: Assessing the benefits and burdens of self‐identification in research methods. Journal of Law and Society, 49(S1). https://doi.org/10.1111/jols.12372

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Meditsch, E. (2005). Journalism as a form of knowledge: A qualitative approach. Brazilian Journalism Research, 1(2), 121–136. https://doi.org/10.25200/BJR.v1n2.2005.835

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Radio Television Digital News Association | Association de Radio, Télévision et Informations Numériques. (2016). Code of journalistic ethics. RTDNA Canada About Us. https://rtdnacanada.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/2016RTDNA_Code_Poster_EN.pdf

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Richert, L., & Dyck, E. (2020). Psychedelic crossings: American mental health and LSD in the 1970s. Medical Humanities, 46(3), 184–191. https://doi.org/10.1136/medhum-2018-011593

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Robertson, C. E., Del Rosario, K. S., & Van Bavel, J. J. (2024). Inside the funhouse mirror factory: How social media distorts perceptions of norms. Current Opinion in Psychology, 60, 101918. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2024.101918

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Rosner, C. (2023). Manipulating the message: How powerful forces shape the news. Dundurn Press.

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Speed, S. (2017). Representations of violence: (Re)telling Indigenous women’s stories and the politics of knowledge production. In C. Andersen & J. M. O’Brien (Eds.), Sources and Methods in Indigenous Studies (pp. 178–184). Routledge.

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Wardle, C. (2020). Understanding information disorder: Essential guides. First Draft. https://firstdraftnews.org/long-form-article/understanding-information-disorder/

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Authors
Michelle Gagnon PhD(c)
Dr. Pamela Kryskow. MD

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Advisor: 

Curt Petrovich, Journalist