Communication Ethics (continues...)

TUDY

Directions: Read the paragraphs below to check or counter check your ideas in the ENGAGE section.

Communication ethics is concerned primarily with human communication mediated by communications technologies, from print to radio, television, and other advanced electronic media.  The National Communication Association (NCA) in the US maintains that ethical communication is fundamental to responsible thinking, decision making, and the development of relationships and communities within and across contexts, cultures, channels, and media. 

In this chapter, we will look at the fundamentals of ethical communication, its significance and characteristics, as well as the factors and dilemmas influencing ethical communication. We will also see what light they shed on the topic of handling communication dilemma.

Why is ethical communication important?

Ethical communication is fundamental to responsible thinking, decision making, and the development of relationships and communities within and across context, cultures, channels, and media. Ethical communication enhances human worth and dignity by fostering truthfulness, fairness, responsibility, personal integrity, and respect for self and others, while unethical communication threatens the quality of all communication and consequently the well-being of individuals and the society in which we live.

A lifestyle characterized by complete lack of ethical behavior would be so antisocial that it might well result in imprisonment or social ostracism (Pfeiffer and Forsberg, 1993). It follows that communication that is devoid of the ethical standards will not result to a happy ending, as reflected in the photo that follows.

Characteristics of Ethical communication

A few of the characteristics of ethical communication include:

§  all relevant information;

§  truthfulness in every sense and not deceptive in any way;

§  accuracy and sincerity. avoiding language that manipulate, discriminates or exaggerates;

§  fair presentation of ideas.

An individual’s religious upbringing, philosophical, and cultural ideals shape his or her communication ethics. However, bad judgment may cloud over one’s thoughts thus disrupting moral. As a stabilizing agent, we may consider time-tested ideals that have been useful in communication.

Ø  Socrates, Thomas Hobbes, and John Locke believed in a social contract theory – that people in society have an unwritten agreement with one another (Staubhaar et al. 2014). For example, news organizations uphold their social responsibility of reporting news with integrity.

Ø  Aristotle’s Nicomachean ethics asserts that virtue is a state between the extremes of excess and deficiency. A righteous person feels pleasure in behaving rightly.

Ø  The golden rule, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” is from the Bible. This was also taught by the Chinese philosopher, Confucius. In the context of communication, this means everyone must treat each other fairly and respectfully.

Ø  The principle of honesty decrees that you should not deceive other people. One way of deceiving people is by lying inorder to mislead someone intentionally. Another way is through various non-verbal communication, such as conveying false information by employing a misrepresentative body language.

Although withholding information may seem like a violation to the principle of honesty, this is not always the case. If you refuse to tell your friend that she looked half as pretty in her previous hairstyle, this is called tact and you are not deceiving your friend. By doing so, you are building trust which is the foundation of any social relationship.

Ø  The greatest good principle by John Stuart requires that you avoid doing things that can harm other people or damage their property (Pfeiffer and Forsberg, 1993). It requires that you always seek the greatest good for everyone. This does not require you to improve the lot of others. It merely requires that you do not inflict harm on others. This is an idea embedded in the Philippine constitution and in laws of most countries. Thus, this principle embodies a person’s legal rights and is the basis of the other ethical principles mentioned here.

Ø  The Commitment Principle. Throughout life, you will make several pledges and promises. This principle holds that you fulfill all the commitments you make and thus fulfill the special obligations attached to them. Application of this principle varies widely depending on the relationships you maintain. Within the family, the commitment principle requires that you look after one another and provide emotional support. In the workplace, this principle provides that you follow the standard procedures and respect lines of authority.

Ø  Situation ethics considers moral principles to be relative to the situation at hand, urging consideration of alternate frameworks depending on the situation (Straubhaar, 2014). Individuals may trust their intuitive sense of what is right, and guidelines might have exceptions if the overall purpose is good (Day, 1991). For example, although revealing the hidden recording of the former President Arroyo’s “Hello Garci”, violated her privacy, it was considered by the Supreme Court as acceptable since it served as public interest.