SPJ’s national ethics committee studied a collection of lapses in journalism ethics occurring since September 2006.

The committee grouped those lapses into categories — and then compiled a list only of those categories where journalists appeared to have the most trouble sticking to responsible journalism as outlined by SPJ’s ethics code. National President Christine Tatum wrote a column about the committee’s findings.

The column had an impact: Several publications ran the column. And U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) cited it during an Oct. 4 meeting of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee that was focused on the proposed federal shield law for journalists.