Most, if not all advertising students have heard the glaring statistic that ranks their chosen profession as the third least trustworthy among public opinion, outdone only by politicians and attorneys.
As an advertising hopeful, this hurts. It really does. I consider myself an extremely trustworthy person. I practice transparency and open-channel communication in my everyday personal life: my phone has no password lock, my social network pages are open to the public and my tweets have always been unprotected.
Furthermore, the thought of cheating or stealing has always made my stomach churn. My ethical convictions are so strong that I have never even movie hopped. That seems silly, I know. And I’ll admit that cheating a billion-dollar corporation out of ten bucks falls into an area most would call gray and even inspires a Robin Hood-like rebellion among most, but for some inexplicable reason, this and similar situations have just always given me a feeling of unease.
So considering all this, understand why I take offense to a statement criticizing my future profession before I even get the chance to prove the stereotype wrong. But I will prove it wrong.
As purveyors of information, media professionals are given a big responsibility--- to not lie. And yes, I was indeed being facetious just then when I acted as if this expectation is one that is difficult to meet. Come on, people; it’s not that hard. I am all about competition, but I’m even more about fairness.
Getting ahead in the short term by fudging numbers, reporting unconfirmed news, falsifying facts, stealing work or using other unethical methods has been proven in history several times over to simply not be worth it.
Our American work culture, which is focused on increasingly higher expectations that are nearing humanly impossible, is creating pressures that when faced can make dishonesty seem like the only way to deliver and achieve success or simply keep a job. Especially with today’s economic climate, a small lie or an undetected use of another’s work can seem like justified means if it means keeping food on the table.
And that’s why an ethical mindset is such an integral part of media communications: one’s ethics can so easily be compromised when the stakes are high enough, and advertising is a particularly high stakes game. And again, there’s the country’s looming economic crisis and an unemployment rate that keeps millions up at night playing into employee behavior as well.
In 2009 Time.com posted results from a Harrison Interactive survey of 1,200 employed Americans that revealed “fully 28% of respondents said they would act immorally… to keep their jobs” (What People Will Do to Keep a Job).
That is a serious statistic. While I may empathize with that 28 percent’s intentions (considering that they may have a family or other dependents for which to provide), their seemingly small lies and dishonest behavior could be the first domino to fall that ultimately causes a catastrophic disaster that could harm millions.
Most of the scandals and corporate controversies of the last century can be attributed to attempted financial gain. And while they not only led to huge losses, negatively affecting capitol as well as reputation and brand equity, in several of these instances, the environment was destroyed and/or human lives were lost, as was seen in the blunder caused by BP in 2010.
As media professionals, we are the disseminators of information, and our dishonesty can be just as disastrous. To think that this is not true would be irresponsible and ignorant. Ethical behavior should be the guiding force in all we do. If not for the greater good, then for others. And if not for others, then for ourselves.
“With great power comes great responsibility.” ---Uncle Ben, Spiderman
As an advertising hopeful, this hurts. It really does. I consider myself an extremely trustworthy person. I practice transparency and open-channel communication in my everyday personal life: my phone has no password lock, my social network pages are open to the public and my tweets have always been unprotected.
Furthermore, the thought of cheating or stealing has always made my stomach churn. My ethical convictions are so strong that I have never even movie hopped. That seems silly, I know. And I’ll admit that cheating a billion-dollar corporation out of ten bucks falls into an area most would call gray and even inspires a Robin Hood-like rebellion among most, but for some inexplicable reason, this and similar situations have just always given me a feeling of unease.
So considering all this, understand why I take offense to a statement criticizing my future profession before I even get the chance to prove the stereotype wrong. But I will prove it wrong.
As purveyors of information, media professionals are given a big responsibility--- to not lie. And yes, I was indeed being facetious just then when I acted as if this expectation is one that is difficult to meet. Come on, people; it’s not that hard. I am all about competition, but I’m even more about fairness.
Getting ahead in the short term by fudging numbers, reporting unconfirmed news, falsifying facts, stealing work or using other unethical methods has been proven in history several times over to simply not be worth it.
Our American work culture, which is focused on increasingly higher expectations that are nearing humanly impossible, is creating pressures that when faced can make dishonesty seem like the only way to deliver and achieve success or simply keep a job. Especially with today’s economic climate, a small lie or an undetected use of another’s work can seem like justified means if it means keeping food on the table.
And that’s why an ethical mindset is such an integral part of media communications: one’s ethics can so easily be compromised when the stakes are high enough, and advertising is a particularly high stakes game. And again, there’s the country’s looming economic crisis and an unemployment rate that keeps millions up at night playing into employee behavior as well.
In 2009 Time.com posted results from a Harrison Interactive survey of 1,200 employed Americans that revealed “fully 28% of respondents said they would act immorally… to keep their jobs” (What People Will Do to Keep a Job).
That is a serious statistic. While I may empathize with that 28 percent’s intentions (considering that they may have a family or other dependents for which to provide), their seemingly small lies and dishonest behavior could be the first domino to fall that ultimately causes a catastrophic disaster that could harm millions.
Most of the scandals and corporate controversies of the last century can be attributed to attempted financial gain. And while they not only led to huge losses, negatively affecting capitol as well as reputation and brand equity, in several of these instances, the environment was destroyed and/or human lives were lost, as was seen in the blunder caused by BP in 2010.
As media professionals, we are the disseminators of information, and our dishonesty can be just as disastrous. To think that this is not true would be irresponsible and ignorant. Ethical behavior should be the guiding force in all we do. If not for the greater good, then for others. And if not for others, then for ourselves.
“With great power comes great responsibility.” ---Uncle Ben, Spiderman
No comments:
Post a Comment