Using Migrants for Interest

While reading one of the long reads about how the media framed the way we see the migrant crisis, the article mentioned an interesting point about journalists that get migrant stories. The refugees' words are left up to the interpretation of the reporter. The reporter can make it as dramatic or falsified as he/she wants and no one would ever know. There is a higher risk of this happening because of the interest in depressing stories of hardship and despair. It's almost like these migrant's stories are being glamorized in a way for the audience to empathize and make steps towards taking action. I suppose the end result is beneficial for the betterment of the migrant situation but this begs the question of whether or not this is ethical. It is also worth noting that this article focuses on the migrant situation of Europe but does this apply in the United States?