Post on 18-Jan-2016
Plaisance, Chapter 2
“Ethics in Media”
A Systematic Approach to Making Ethical Decisions
– The Multidimensional Ethical Reasoning and Inquiry Task Sheet (MERITS)
• Conflicting values• Normative frameworks• Discussion
Conflicting Values
• Description of facts• Identification of principles and values
– Privacy– Conflicts of interest– Justice– Truth telling– Transparency– Harm – Etc.
• Statement of a specific ethical issue
A: analysis: the application of philosophical ethical theories
• The Greek tradition of moral absolutes– Aristotle’s virtue ethics
• Duty based ethics (deontology)– Kant’s categorical imperative– Ross’ prima facie duties– Feminist ethics
• Benhabib
• Consequence based ethics (teleology)
Consequential ethics, continued
• Utilitarianism– Bentham and Mill
• Social contract– Hobbes– Locke– Rosseau– Rawls
Decision
• Decide what to do
• Defend based upon a philosophical ethical theory– All approaches may arrive at the same
decision, but for different reasons– Different approaches may arrive at
different decisions