Deontological Ethics by Christine Wandolo

Deontological Ethics

1. Deontological Ethics Christine Wandolo

2. Ethics Branch of philosophy that deals with the moral dimension of human life (Brody, 1983) I nvolves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior.

3. Ethical theories An ethical theory includes an account of value, obligation and rights, but these concepts are not of equal importance for each theory. Divided into three general subject areas: Meta-ethics Normative ethics A pplied ethics

4. Meta-ethics: searches for origins or causes of right and wrong. focuses on what morality itself is. Normative Ethics: s tudy of ethical action. right and wrong are found in an individual's behavior. Applied Ethics: right and wrong can be found within scenarios. philosophical examination of particular issues in private and public life that are matters of moral judgment.

5. Theories that base obligations and rights on values are called teleological. T heories that do not base all obligations and rights upon values are called deontological theories.

6. Deontological Ethics Deontological - from Greek word deon , “that which is binding.” Deontological approach: also called rule-based morality. Proposes that an action is right if it conforms to a proper moral rule. Examples: prohibition, action towards people, reward or punishment

7. C oncept of obligation or duty is central for deontologists, but not all deontological theories take duty as primary. Example: N atural-rights theory takes rights as fundamental and establishes obligations or duties on the basis of rights. Kant’s theory does not establish all duties on the basis of rights.

8. Types of Deontological Theories Agent - centered: m orality is intensely personal Patient - centered: rights based Contractarian: c ontract/promise based Divine c ommand: c ommand of God Kant’s duty- b ased ethics

9. Kant’s Duty-based Ethics Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) - born in Königsberg East Prussia (now Kaliningrad, Russia). S ought to answer the question: “what is good?” Answer: Good will According to Kant, an action could only count as the action of a good will if it satisfied the test of the “Categorical Imperative.”

10. Categorical I mperative A rule that is true in all circumstances. T ells us how we ought to behave irrespective of our inclinations. S tates the principle that you should ‘act only according to that maxim by which you can at the same time will that it should become a universal law for all rational beings.’

11. Categorical imperative comes in two versions: 1. O ur responsibility includes following maxims that make us law-abiding members of the society. “ Act only on a maxim that you can at the same time will to become a universal law.” E.g., do not plagiarize; public relations professional

12. 2. “ Act so as to treat humanity in oneself and others only as an end in itself, and never merely as a means.” People treated as valuable, as an end in themselves, not just in order to achieve something else. People should not be tricked, manipulated or bullied. e.g. poor treatment of workers

13. Application of Deontology Is abortion right? How about euthanasia? Punishment/death penalty? Media Perspective: Is it appropriate to lie to tell a story? Staging shots and reconstructions Manipulating pictures through P hotoshop Cheating with effects

14. Strengths and Weaknesses Strengths Value for humans Some acts are always wrong Faster decision making, consequentialist Has moral laws that hold universally Clarity Rationality Basis for human rights

15. Absolutist; thus inflexible Reduction of overall happiness of the world Does not deal well where duties are in conflict Moral law: why should we believe that there is objective morality? Anthropocentric Forming a maxim is difficult, e.g. “do not tell lies” or “do not expose others to violence.” Weaknesses

16. Conclusion Professional codes of practice are useful and provide general guidance in journalistic practice, but they can neither contemplate every eventuality nor resolve hard cases Journalists should be sensitive to ethical matters Use of theories which will not compromise journalistic standards

17. The End