Summer, 2009
Dr. Paul Martin Lester Òdr. lesÓ
California State University,
Fullerton
E-MAIL: lester@fullerton.edu
Phone Number: 657 278-4604
Office: CP460-21
Office Hours: Through E-mail
Professor's Homepage: http://commfaculty.fullerton.edu/lester/
ProfessorÕs Twitter
Account: http://www.twitter.com/pmlester
NOTE: This class ÒmeetsÓ completely
online.
You are required to attend class
meetings during the scheduled day and time just as with a face-to-face course.
Gain access to the course through
your Titan Web Portal at http://my.fullerton.edu.
Click on the Blackboard tab at the top. Click to access your Blackboard
courses. Find this course and click on its link. Perform these tasks:
1.
Click on Syllabus and read it. Buy the textbook.
2. Click on Lectures>Join and make sure you can enter text
within the Virtual Classroom. Be sure and turn off any pop-up blockers you
might have on your Web browser.
3. Click on Groups to see which group you have been assigned.
Email dr. les if you donÕt see your name.
4. Read the Foreword and Chapter 1.
5. Click on Discussion Board (DB) and answer the first DB.
6. Go to http://secondlife.com and sign up for a Second Life
free account.
Cheating, plagiarism, and/or
inappropriate online behavior will not be tolerated and may be subject to
disciplinary action. For more information on these issues see http://www.plagiarism.org/ If at any time you have technical difficulties, contact the
professor or the help desk at 278-7777.
Course Objectives:
Mass Media Ethics is the
study of moral and professional conduct within various communications contexts.
This course will look at cases involved with advertising, broadcast journalism,
film, photojournalism, print journalism, public relations, television, and the
World Wide Web. The goal of Mass Media Ethics is to provide students with the
ability to recognize and confront potential ethical issues they might find
within their careers. You will be expected to meet those standards and find
that doing so—as a student and a fledgling professional--brings a great
personal reward and sense of accomplishment. Through successful completion of
course readings and assignments--and through active participation in class
discussions—you will have the tools to identify and analyze ethical issues.
Required
Text:
Patterson,
Philip & Lee Wilkins. Media Ethics Issues and Cases Sixth Edition
(McGraw Hill: 2005).
Sign up to follow your professor at:
http://www.twitter.com/pmlester to receive updates of
interest.
Course Grading and Requirements:
Chapter Case Analysis: 20
percent
Chapter Discussion: 10
percent
Discussion Board Responses: 12
percent
Mid-Term Exam: 12
percent
Second Life Media Ethics Paper 5 percent
Final Paper: 36
percent
Attendance:
5 percent
Plus or minus grades will not be
given.
Chapter Case Analysis and
Discussion:
You will be assigned a group that
corresponds with a topic from the chapters in the text. You will write YOUR OWN
five page paper articulating the ethical issues at stake and your position
based on a case from the chapter your group is assigned to cover. Your group is
responsible for leading a discussion about your topic during the class
discussion. Each one of you will ask the class one question pertaining to the
general topic for the chapter and one question pertaining to a specific case
study at the end of the chapter. Follow-up questions are allowed.
Your paper is worth 20 percent while
your discussion facilitation is worth 10 percent for this assignment. The paper
is due by noon
the day of your group's discussion. Your commentary must address the ten
sections below (each section is worth 10 points) that are related to a
Systematic Moral Analysis (SMA). Submit your paper within Assignments and
Turnitin.
SYSTEMATIC MORAL ANALYSIS (SMA)
1. What are the three
most significant facts of the case? Explain why each specific fact is important.
Include the phrase for each fact, ÒThis fact is important because
É.Ó
2. What are three
facts you would like to know about the case? What is missing from the case that
you think would help explain the actions of those involved? Use library and Web
resources to try to discover the answers to these questions.
3. What is the ethical
dilemma related to the case? For example, does the case involve promise
keeping, a conflict of interest, cheating, privacy issues, economic influences,
and so on? Name the dilemma and briefly explain why you think it to be of
relevance to the case.
4. Who are the moral
agents and/or stakeholders and what are their specific job or role-related
activities? A moral agent is anyone who can be held responsible for his or her
actions. A stakeholder is anyone affected by the decision in a case. Try to be
as specific as possible when listing their job or role-related activities.
5. What are the values
of the moral agents and/or stakeholders? Values are general concepts (truthfulness,
fairness, diversity, and so on) that correspond with the job or role-related
activities of those involved. Clearly state the two most opposite values in all
you mention.
6. What are the
loyalties of the moral agents and/or stakeholders? Loyalties are alliances
based on promises to oneself or to others that come from reasonable
expectations of job or role-related activities. Someone involved with a case
might have loyalties to him or herself, to family members, to sources or
clients, to an organization, or to a profession. As with values, clearly state
the two most opposite loyalties of all you mention.
7. For each of the six
moral philosophies, come up with a possible justification by a moral agent or
stakeholder in the case study. The six moral philosophies are categorical
imperative, utilitarianism, hedonism, golden mean, golden rule, and veil of
ignorance (see
http://commfaculty.fullerton.edu/lester/courses/ethicalphils.html for details).
Depending on the case and the actions of those involved, one or two moral
philosophies might be more salient than others, nevertheless, consider all six
in the analysis. Also, use outside sources to let the instructor know you
understand what each philosophy means.
8. What creative
and/or credible alternatives could resolve the issue? Two of your alternatives
must be creative and far-fetched while the other two must be realistic.
9. What would you do?
Pretend that you are a media professional and one of the moral agents and/or
stakeholders involved with the case. What action should you take and why?
10. Bibliography: You
need to have at least three sources for your analysis. You must use APA style.
See http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/.
Attendance:
Usually within the first 30 minutes
of a class role will be taken. If your name is not on the list for any reason
you will not get attendance credit. However, you can make up a missed class by
reading the Recording for the entire class for that date (Extended Links>
Class Lectures> Choose the date) and write a 2-page commentary concerning
what was discussed. E-mail your paper to the professor no later than noon one
day after the missed class.
Discussion
Board (DB) Responses:
Each day you will answer a
discussion question posted on Blackboard. You must respond to the question by noon the
day of the class discussion. You cannot make up a missed Discussion Board
question. CAUTION: USE THE SUBMIT, NOT
THE SAVE BUTTON.
Mid-Term Exam:
You will have plenty of time to take
an open-book and open-notes multiple choice exam entirely
through the Blackboard system.
Second Life Media Ethics Paper
Write a three-page critique of one
form of media you find on Second Life—magazine, newsletter, newspaper,
news release, television broadcast, and so on. You will do better if you include
interviews with the creators and/or users of the media entity you select,
outside sources, and suggestions for making it better. Submit your paper within
Assignments and Turnitin.
Final Paper:
You will write a five-page paper
that analyzes an ethical dilemma for a case you find outside the book that
relates to your current or future profession in mass communications. You will
analyze this case using the same criteria as with the SMA for the chapter
paper. Submit your paper within Assignments and Turnitin.
Mass Media Ethics Course Outline
Monday,
June 22 Online
Orientation
We
will use this class time to get you comfortable with participating in an online
course. How to navigate around the class website, chat
within the virtual classroom,
break out into small group discussions, answer discussion
board questions, and upload
papers to the professor will be some of the topics covered.
Wednesday,
June 24 Ethical
Imperatives and Philosophies
Pages xi-xvi & 1-19.
DB1
Due by noon
Thursday,
June 25 Becoming
a Moral Adult
Pages
338-347.
DB2
Due by noon
Monday,
June 29 Information
Ethics
Pages
20-67
DB3
Due by noon
Wednesday,
July 1 Loyalty
Pages
94-122.
DB4
Due by noon
Thursday,
July 2 Privacy
and Ethics
Pages
147-174.
DB5
Due by noon
Monday,
July 6 SMA
Practice, Part 1: Sections 1 - 3
Read
the Kuwait Case Study within External Links
Familiarize
yourself with the SMA steps above.
No
DB Assignment Today
Wednesday,
July 8 SMA
Practice, Part 2: Sections 4 - 6
No
DB Assignment Today
Thursday,
July 9 SMA
Practice, Part 3: Sections 7 - 10
No
DB Assignment Today
Monday,
July 13 Mid-Term
Examination
You
have this day to complete an open book and open
notes mid-term exam. Check Announcements for details.
No
DB Assignment and No Class Today
Wednesday,
July 15 Second Life
Class Meeting
We
will meet today on ÒFullerton IslandÓ where you will
receive instructions for your Second Life Media Ethics
Assignment.
Thursday,
July 16 Promise
Keeping
Pages
175-208.
If
you are in Group 1, Chapter Case SMA is due by
noon, select one case from VII-A to VII-E with
Group
Discussion during class
DB6
Due by noon
Monday,
July 20 Economics
and Ethics
Pages
209-236.
If
you are in Group 2, Chapter Case SMA is due by
noon, select one case from VIII-A to VIII-D with
Group
Discussion during class
DB7
Due by noon
Wednesday,
July 22 Image
Ethics
Pages
237-276.
If
you are in Group 3, Chapter Case SMA is due by
noon, select one case from IX-A to IX-E with Group
Discussion
during class
DB8
Due by noon
Thursday,
July 23 Advertising
Ethics
Pages
68-93.
If
you are in Group 4, Chapter Case SMA is due by
noon, select one case from III-A to III-G with Group
Discussion
during class
DB9
Due by noon
Monday,
July 27 Public
Relations Ethics
Pages
123-146.
If
you are in Group 5, Chapter Case SMA is due by
noon, select one case from V-A to V-D (Sorry, Case V-E is
not allowed) with Group
Discussion
during class
DB10
Due by noon
Wednesday,
July 29 Art
and Entertainment Ethics
Pages
309-337.
If
you are in Group 6, Chapter Case SMA is due by
noon, select one case from XI-A to XI-F with Group
Discussion
during class
DB11
Due by noon
Thursday,
July 30 New
Media Ethics
Pages
277-308.
If
you are in Group 7, Chapter Case SMA is due by
noon, select one case from X-A to X-D with Group
Discussion
during class
DB12
Due by noon
Sunday,
August 2 Second Life
Media Ethics Paper Due by noon
Final Paper Due
by noon