•The media and their responsibilities

The media and their responsibilities

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The central focus of this document is media and their responsibilities as viewed in the lenses of deontology and virtue ethics ethical theories, and the perspectives of media as informed by emotivism. Furthermore, the article explores on the values and behaviors that media and how the theories utilized can help in forming constituents describing ethical behavior of media. Ethical issues relating to the media responsibilities to the society as well as the views, observations and solutions that virtue ethics and deontology theories and emotivism perspective offer to ensure media is responsible and ethical in spreading news and information are discussed in the article.

Indeed, our constitution grants everyone the freedom of speech within the county with the expectations that that every citizen, organ or agency exercises due diligence not to infringe on the rights of others or breach the constitutional privileges. Media too as a fundamental segment of the modern society, which influence an individual’s viewpoints, world’s view, and country’s views, should be much responsible for mainstreaming the country’s values, ideals and projecting positive image of the country. This is due to the reason that political decisions and social influence are more dependent on media reporting. Therefore, media undoubtedly has prodigious responsibility to disseminate and report accurately and accountably in addition to being thorough and upholding fairness (Silverstone, 2013). That is, the media in exercising its mandates should strive to uphold proper moral standards and report on socially suitable and ethical.

Virtue ethics focuses on the virtuous character in informing actions undertaken by an individual (Mosser, 2013). Thus, media as the uttermost or the super peer has to be treated as the agent of high moral standard. Media has to strike a balance between serving the interest of the stockholders and providing the society with credible information. This can be achieved by media through structuring of structure virtues based on the categories of age so that the high virtues from young to old are propagated effectively.

Classically, media has made it possible for many people listen and view raw content from the primary sources. This implies therefore that there is inevitable need to establish true virtues and reestablish important moral virtues prior to spreading or availing skewed information or toxic content which the society puts great concern . In relation to this, virtuous individuals usually harbor proper motives in their minds and are normally driven heart, desire, decision, vision, belief, determination and dream. Hence, media is expected to fit into the same shoes of a virtuous person however, media do not put virtues into consideration as they focus on serving the interest of the media companies for profits. Media entices society with the promise of guidance however, the need to provide the public with the raw footage and unedited content usually devour an individual up causing a ripple effect throughout the society. Of course, people usually learn from social interaction, which media is part, how to act, feel and behave and hence, ethically, media should affirm the power of a positive atmosphere without faking, so that it enables the society to gain and learn a more positive views about their surroundings, events, and their own bodies.

Deontology ethical theory on its part puts into consideration actions and reasons for undertaking such actions (Mosser, 2013). Therefore, media inevitably have to be judged by its actions of providing accurate and reliable information to the dependent society. In the event that it provides distorted messages for example, in glorifying in a skewed world, or providing mixed messages severely lacking moral standards unhealthy and deceiving. Reporters have to provide the public with healing messages and information that restore their hopes in life. Thus, news channels need to ensure that they cut out or avoid airing of information, events or footages that impact negatively on the public which may evoke anger, panic or leading to false reporting of innocent person (Christians et al, 2015).

Emotivism is another hindrance hampers on responsible media reporting. Emotivism is dictated by an individual’s emotions (Mosser, 2013). That is, if something makes a person feel better, then that is right, and if a particular thing makes a person feel bad, then that is wrong. Ideally, this can be fabricating because, emotivism influences an individual’s ethical and moral decisions on feelings, hence, facts can be denied as implied by Connell, Lauricella and Wartella (2015; Napoli, 2015). For instance, if individual takes marihuana and feels high make him/her feel good, then he/she will interpret as right, however, while coming down of the drug influence, the person may feel pain, anxious and angry, etc., making him feel bad, and the same person will interpret this as wrong. Ideally, interpretation of ethics and morals in such a manner denies facts that drug addiction is wrong. Media as dictated by emotivism may place a moving advert glorying the use of tobacco which appeals and lures drugs users to using the particular brands more with very limited warning on the health effects, or with just very short warning that does not capture an individual’s attention. Of course, some will argue that media has given warning concerning the use of the products. Some on the other end, may consider hidden or glance warning deceiving and cunning because it devoted large time to advertising ‘highness’ and ‘coolness’ and not outlining pertinent health risks by using the same product.

Nonetheless, despite the negatives that run rampant spoiling the society, there are flickers of hope which inspire society, especially, where people share educative and stories to help others realize value of life and observing ethical life, and thus, emotivism perspective is tricky because an individual’s actions or perceptions can be an edge line or fine line between life and death (Neill and Moody, 2015).

Reference

Connell, S. L., Lauricella, A. R., & Wartella, E. (2015). Parental co-use of media technology with their young children in the USA. Journal of Children and Media, 9(1), 5-21.

Christians, C. G., Fackler, M., Richardson, K., Kreshel, P., & Woods, R. H. (2015). Media Ethics: Cases and Moral Reasoning. Routledge.