One of the cases is Hill v. Colorado where it was decided that a state law that limited counselling, distribution of literary materials, protests and education to individuals entering a health facility was not unconstitutional. Another case is Virginia v. Black where it was decided that acts of cross-burning conducted with an aim to intimidate are illegal. In Snyder v. Phelps speeches that address public concerns and issued in public cannot be construed to violate the tort of emotional distress even when such speeches are viewed as offensive. In Agency for International Development v. Alliance for Open Society International it was ruled that the imposition of conditions of those receiving federal grants violated their freedom of speech.
The cases have emphasized the need for stakeholders in the mass media to evaluate the consequences of their actions prior to engaging the public. The courts tend to protect the interests of the public. Such efforts are a service to the public as acts such as cross-burning to intimidate others are deemed illegitimate.
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Prompt 2
The possibility of most of the mass media content being untrue or unsubstantiated indicates that the information should not be regarded as credible without verification. I often tend to obtain print and broadcast information from renowned and mainstream media sources. Most of these sources employ professionals that have expansive knowledge and expertise in evaluating the content being released to the public. Also, I seek to authenticate the information available from such sources by making comparisons to ensure information that is usually exaggerated is disregarded.
Also, I seek to authenticate the information available on personal blogs and other social media platforms by conducting background checks on the authors of such content. In case they have no background understanding of the topical issues being discussed, such content is disregarded as it is likely based on falsehoods and is likely to be fake. It means most of the information is not treated as credible as it appears on face value.
Prompt 3
Internet media does not live by the same ethical standards like traditional journalism. There are various cases where internet media have been accused of lack of honesty and truthfulness in their content. Also, they sometimes blatantly violate privacy rules, especially when presenting content in the form of videos that contain erotic and violent scenes that are ineligible for the mass market.
Also, due to competition, ethical standards have lessened with priority being given to speed over accuracy. Such trends are noticeable when diverse forms of digital content are presented and later deleted by internet media players. The priority is mainly to be the first to air the content to generate traffic with little regard to the accuracy or verifiability of the content being aired. Also, internet media players have failed to authenticate their sources of information making the content being presented suffer the risks of being hearsay, rumours and exaggerations.
Prompt 4
One of the ethical situations involved Zachery Kouwe. Using the golden mean, the acts of Kouwe were extreme and, therefore, unethical. The failure to acknowledge the original writer of the article amounts to illegality hence Zachery was wrong and should be punished.
Based on Kant’s categorical imperative, the act is also unethical as such behaviour of plagiarizing other people’s work is immoral and no one would wish such behaviours to become universal law. The actions of Zachery contravened the guidelines for the duties he had in the place of employment and ought to be penalized.
On the basis of Mill’s concept of utility, the actions of Zachery were wrong as they had negative consequences on the majority. The media house i.e. the New York Times suffered negative image that harms its business prospects. The media house employs a high number of individuals and its loss of business impacts negatively on the welfare of such people and their dependents.
Also, based on Rawl’s veil of ignorance, the act of Zachery is immoral as it is made on the basis of furthering self-interest by presenting another person’s work as own. Further, based on Judaeo-Christian persons as ends, the action is wrong as it contravenes the requirement of truth-telling.
Reference
Brown, F. (2011). Journalism Ethics: A Casebook of Professional Conduct for News Media (4th ed). New York. Marion Street Press.
