“Academic freedom is not a self-justifying good. It must be oriented to some end that merits the support of those who finance it. One end of liberal education is the advancement of knowledge, which requires diverse opinions and the freedom to challenge orthodoxy. But another is to preserve and transmit a social and cultural inheritance. This is true if the transmission encourages challenges to…

Investigate the two options given. Which one requires a cultural commissar to ensure you’re doing it right? I think most people are still going to pick “A” in private, but due to negative pressure and threat in society might choose “B” in public. It is only your integrity that is at stake. We are defined by the choices we make and do not make. Too much of stable Western society is a peril for…

A code of ethics is a tool that establishes minimum standards. It sets a code of conduct for coaches as they advance in their careers. It’s a tool that inspires coaches to share shared beliefs and do their best work.

Coaches exhibit proper respect for all people’s human rights, integrity, and worth. Individual rights to privacy, confidentiality, self-determination, and autonomy are respected, but they are conscious that legal and other responsibilities can create inconsistency and conflict with the exercise of these rights. Coaches are keen to learn more about cultural, person, and position disparities, such as those arising from age, gender, race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, disability, language, and socioeconomic status.

A code of ethics is a tool that establishes minimum standards. It sets a code of conduct for coaches as they advance in their careers. It’s a tool that inspires coaches to share shared beliefs and do their best work.

The term corporate social responsibility is a business practice that involves participating in initiatives that benefit the society as a whole. The idea behind corporate social responsibility is that organizations have multiple responsibilities to maintain in the long run. Therefore, the corporate social responsibilities can be arranged in a pyramid, with the fundamental ones closer to the bottom. As the business successfully meets the responsibilities at the lower level that compel it to the law and to shareholders, it can progress to higher level responsibilities that will benefit the society. Economic Responsibilities The first and foremost responsibility of an organization is its economic responsibility. This means that the organization primarily needs to be concerned with making a profit. In reality if the company doesn’t make profits, it can’t survive. Employees would lose jobs this way and the company will not be able to pay attention to its social responsibilities. The company first needs to make sure that it can be profitable before it considers about being a good corporate citizen.

Legal Responsibilities The legal responsibilities of an organization are the requirements that are enforced on it by law. Once the organization is confident that it will make profits, the next most important responsibility is that it abides by all laws and legal regulations. Examples of legal responsibilities can be environmental law, regulations to labor and criminal law.

1. Ethics

Ethics – everybody seems to know what this word means, but we struggle to define it. The word itself is not a verb, but we are challenged to take action when exercising ethical responsibility.  Before we try to understand any definitions, we have to realize that ethics are a challenge to human beings on a daily basis.  We all seek to fulfill our desires, but ethics makes us think twice before considering our personal interests.  Potter Stewart said, “[e]thics is knowing the difference between what you have a right to do and what is right to do. (1)” This explanation can lead us along a series of many deep thoughts and discussions, but the main point to take away from this is that we should always strive to do what is right.  Webster’s Dictionary defines ethics as “the discipline dealing with what is good and bad and with moral duty and obligation. (2)” This broad definition covers a broad array of situations.  Ethics is in our relationships, our jobs and our daily decisions.  Personally I believe ethics isn’t what we could do, it is what we should do.  As a student of public relations, ethics is in my present and future.  I often critique myself on my interactions with others, and attempt to learn from them so that I can be ethically accommodating in the future.  So, now that I’ve covered ethics, I would also like to discuss the importance of morals, conflicts of interest, principle and finally the golden rule. I believe that to understand ethical approaches in any PR profession, one must learn the importance of each of these.

 2. Morals

Morals are almost always associated with or included in the definition with ethics.  In order for us to make an ethical decision, we usually think about our morals before making a decision about what to say or do.  Some consider ethics to be the quality of our decisions based on our actions, and while this isn’t always a sure way of judging ethics, it seems to be the most exercised approach. As a student studying public relations, I consider this approach every time I am trying to communicate effectively.  Professionals in any field look for qualified individuals to represent a certain aspect of their organization, and sometimes all they have time to observe is the things we say and do.  We are all capable of conforming to a set of norms established by a specific society, and choosing the right thing to do is the moral approach.  Morality also deals with understanding the different intentions and decisions of many groups of people, sometimes vastly different.  Sometimes you can’t hide the fact that your morals are different from someone else’s, but this isn’t simply an opportunity to engage in debate, this could be your opportunity to showcase your respect for another’s individuality.  Giving this kind of consideration to others can be impressive to behold, especially if this conflict of interest is about an ethical issue.  This is a great lead in to the importance of understanding conflicts of interest.

3. Conflicts of Interest

Sometimes, there is no clear right or wrong decision that can be made.  Sometimes we are presented with a situation when both sides of the argument seem to hurt someone, or both sides of the argument are wrong in one way or another.

This is one of the hardest scenarios to deal with, seeing as whatever final decisions are made on the issue, the other side of the argument may be hurt or alienated by the decision.  In volume 1 of Jack Rabin’s Encyclopedia of Public Administration and Public Policy, he says, “Some consider conflict of interest to occur only when specific conflict of interest rules or laws are broken.  Many of those laws are aimed at specific issues . . . However, in the larger sense, if an individual (or group) functioning under governmental auspices, responsible for making decisions or taking actions affecting the public, places self-interest ahead of public interest in exercising authority, then a conflict of interest exists. (3)” We frequently see these scenarios in politics.  We recently re-elected our president, and prior to the election, both presidential candidates had engaged in some of the biggest debates about ethical responsibilities and morals.  It’s important to remember that all those involved in the voting process are American, but the controversy between the two parties always ends up putting countrymen at odds with each other.  The results always satisfy the greater percentage of the people, but those who voted otherwise feel ill accommodated.  A good example of ethical responsibility is the desire to unite a nation together, regardless of differences and winners and losers.  We all stand for many of the same morals, and being a part of that army is much greater than any single man, alone at a podium.

  4. Principle

            Now that I’ve added a government example, I think it’s important to now discuss principle.

“Aprinciple is a comprehensive and fundamental law, doctrine, or assumption. (4)” This definition is also taken from Webster’s Dictionary, and refers to “fundamental law” first.  Both legality and ethics distinguish between right and wrong, but they have vast differences, as I’ve previously referenced with Potter Stewart’s quote. There are many early PR cases where laws were abided by, but ethics were thrown out the window.  Take for instance Edward Bernay’s brilliant approach to marketing cigarettes to women.  He called them torches of freedom, and advertised their uses for controlling food cravings and losing weight.  There was nothing even remotely illegal about any of this, but convincing more people to partake in such an unhealthy or even deadly activity cannot be considered ethical. This was back in the 1920s and one could argue that our health standards were not entirely developed, but nevertheless, it still stands today as a good example for distinguishing ethics and law.

  5. The Golden Rule

            The golden rule is a rule that declares that you should “always treat others as you would like to be treated. (5)” This rule is often taught to us when we are very young, but it is a fantastic principle to try to live by.  All of us can recall times when we have been treated poorly, whether by those close to us or by someone in a human resources department somewhere.  It is experiences like these that make us realize how little we like to communicate with people that lack basic respect for others.

Most organizations today have in effect, a code of ethics, which is a statement of beliefs for employees to stand by, and an excellent way for publics to gain understanding about the beliefs of an organization.

These guidelines can help employees remember to maintain a professional and courteous relationship with customers, or serve as constant reminders of the fundamental principles of human relations.  Other guidelines might warn of things not to do, such as lie, bribe, or exploit.  “The guidelines help employees identify what their firm recognizes as acceptable business practices. (5)”

It is exciting to see how an organization can please its customers based on ethics. Whether it appeals to a person’s peace of mind, personal gain, or simply the comfort of doing business with an ethical person, it is satisfying to reap the mutual benefits of ethical public relations.

Ethical responsibilities for the public relations professional include the recognition of morals, appropriate management of conflicts of interest, an understanding of principles, and learning to embrace the golden rule. Always remember where you are, and what you had to do to get there.  There are many decisions and events in all of our lives. Some we are proud of, and some we regret. By keeping your own ethical responsibilities in mind, and by accepting the challenge of each of these responsibilities, others will recognize your effort and ability, and that is how each of us can make a difference.

Sources

Stewart, Potter. "Ethics Quotes." BrainyQuote. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Oct. 2012. <http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/ethics.html>.

"Ethic." Merriam-Webster. An Encyclopedia Britannica Company, n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2012. <www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ethic>.

Rabin, Jack. Encyclopedia of Public Administration and Public Policy. Volume 1 ed. 2003. 223. Print.

“Principle.” Merriam-Webster. An Encyclopedia Britannica Company, n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2012 <www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/principle>.