Theories of Communication
Week 2
MMC110
Instructed by Hillarie Zimmermann
Today’s Class
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Chapter 14 – Review
Activity – What would you do?
Activity – Personal code of ethics
Assignment 1 (due Sept. 23) - review marking rubric
Presentation sign-up
Review blog comments from week 1
Review homework
Chapter 14 - Review
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Canadian media laws
Limits to “freedom of the press”
CRTC and the Broadcasting Act
Relationship between copyright and
the internet
• Media ethics
Ethics and Law
Ethics and law are separate spheres but they overlap in theory and
practice. In theory, ethics justifies laws and legal practices .
Situations in mass communications raise both legal and ethical
questions. In many newsrooms, whether an action is legal is
considered to be the first hurdle that any action must clear, before
ethical issues are raised. Also, ethical standards such as fairness and
accuracy are used in court cases to evaluate stories for libel and other
legal problems.
Charter of Rights and Freedoms
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Freedom of expression is a fundamental right in Canada (protected by the
Charter)
Fundamental right of a democratic society
“freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the
press and other media of communication”
The aim of the Charter is to prevent unjustified restrictions of expression (it is
not an absolute)
This freedom however is not guaranteed – there are some restrictions
• Publication bans – weigh the individual’s right to a fair trail against the
media’s freedom of speech
• Defamation law
• Young offenders act
The Importance of Free
Expression
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Democracy – freedom of expression is necessary for a parliamentary democracy
to function properly.
Truth – open discourse and the free availability of information enhance the
quest for truth and the advancement of knowledge
Individual autonomy – allows people to communicate their feelings and desires,
to be artistic, and to explore their individuality.
Defamation
• Defamation (libel or slander) – a statement
that harms someone’s reputation
• “Libel chill”
• Defamation and the Internet
• Defences for Defamation
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Consented
True
Privilege (public record)
Fair comment
Responsible communication
The CRTC and Broadcast
Regulation
CRTC – Canadian Radio-television and
Telecommunications Commission
• Canadian broadcast regulator – governed by the Act –
regulates TV, radio, major telephone companies (does not
regulate newspapers or magazines)
• Mandate: broadcasting and telecommunications systems
serve the Canadian public.
• Ensures that Canadians are seen and heard on
Canadian media
• CRTC keeps new media exempt from
broadcasting regulation
Copyright
• Protect someone’s creative work (includes books,
music, movies, newspapers, maps, etc.) from theft
• Public domain – anyone may use it without
permission
• Copyright and the web – digital technology is testing
older copyright laws but the law of copyright also
applies to the web
The Internet and Copyright
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The Internet has been characterized as the largest threat to copyright
since its inception. The Internet is awash in information, a lot of it with
varying degrees of copyright protection. Copyrighted works on the Net
include news stories, software, novels, screenplays, graphics, pictures,
and even email. In fact, the frightening reality is that almost everything
on the Net is protected by copyright law. That can pose problems for
the hapless surfer." ("The Copyright Web site"
http://www.benedict.com/)
Media Ethics
• Code of ethics – prescribe how practitioners should
go about their work – most media organizations in
Canada have one
• Conflict in duties
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Duty
Duty
Duty
Duty
Duty
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to
self
audience
employer
the profession
society
Activity – Code of Ethics
On your own, search the internet for one of the following mass
media organization’s Code of Ethics:
1. RTNDA (Radio-Television News Director’s Association)
– “the world's largest professional organization exclusively
serving the electronic news profession, consisting of more than
3,000 news directors, news associates, educators and
students” – rtdna.org
2. CAB (Canadian Association of Broadcasters) – “the
national voice of Canada’s private broadcasters, representing
the vast majority of Canadian programming services, including
private radio and television stations, networks, specialty, pay
and pay-per-view services” - cab-acr.ca
Activity – Code of Ethics
In pairs, take 10 minutes to skim through one of the
Code of Ethics to determine what is in the
document.
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Look for the definitions of key terms like
plagiarism, misrepresentation, and conflict of
interest.
Is it clear what broadcasters/journalists should do
in all cases?
What might be open to interpretation?
Moral Principles
• The Golden Mean – avoid extremes and seek
moderation
• “Do unto others”
• Categorical imperatives – commitment to
consistency, clarity and principled evaluation of
arguments
• Utilitarian Ethics – happiness for the greatest number
• Pragmatic ethics – based on consequences
• Egalitarian ethics – all people should be
given equal consideration
Potter’s Box
This model can help sort through ethics problems.
Situation
Values
Principles
Loyalties
What do think are some limitations of this model?
Activity – What would you do?
• Divide the class into six groups.
• Hand out media libel scenarios and have students
discuss them in their groups.
• Take notes on what you would/wouldn’t do in each
situation. Use Potter’s Box to guide your discussion.
• Appoint one person from each group to present back
to the group as a whole.
• Conclude with a group discussion on ethics.
Activity – Personal Code of Ethics
• Considering some of the different ethical philosophies
presented in your text, try to identify your own
personal ethical style.
• Write a short, basic personal code of ethics for
yourself.
• If there is time, share with the class.
Assignment 1 - Review
Student-Led Seminar
Activity – Review Blog comments
• Should our media play a large role in
developing/maintaining our Canadian identity?
Homework
• Pre-read Chapter 4 for next class
• Reflection paper is due at the beginning of next class
• Comment on blog - week 2