First, read the resource Ethics and Free Speech in Communication. Then, address the following:
What is the difference between free speech and ethical speech?
How do free speech and ethical speech relate to bias and perception?
How do these concepts relate to you as both a consumer and a producer of media?
How might these concepts relate to a potential career of yours, whether it is in media/communications or not?
In responding to your peers, comment on their definitions of free speech and ethical speech. What did they discuss that you perhaps had not thought of in regard to the relationship of these ideas and how they tie to bias and perception? Offer evidence and support by relating current ideas and topics of free speech and providing information as to how they relate to your own roles as a producer and consumer of media.
Peer 1
The legal definition of Freedom of Speech from Merriam-Webster online dictionary says the right to express information, ideas, and opinions free of government restrictions based on content and subject only to reasonable limitations (as the power of the government to avoid a clear and present danger) especially as guaranteed by the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Freedom of speech allows U.S. citizens to disagree with policies and regulations such as political agendas. It also gives us the right to protest peacefully. Now ethical speech is for us as individuals to be responsible for our free speech. This means we need to understand our impact on how our writing, words and images will affect other people (Com130 Ethics and Free Speech in communication, n.d.).
Free speech is powerful, it allows us to express our opinions. These opinions can affect and influence what we perceive and base our lives on. Since we as individuals have our own biases, our own assumptions or opinions based on values and beliefs, we need to make sure we use ethical speech and take into consideration the effect of our messages. Aside from how we share free speech, we also must consider our own perception. We all have our own way of understanding and interpreting things. It is important to remember when we listen to others free speech to understand this is their bias, not necessarily ours. We cannot control what others say, but we have control over our reactions. Being aware of how free speech, ethical speech, bias and perception relate to one another will allow us to understand how it impacts others and ourselves.
Understanding freedom of speech, ethical speech, bias and perceptions, we can use them to relate to our personal and professional lifes as producer and consumers of media. As a producer of media, we must be aware of our biases and how it is perceived by others viewing our media. We need to think about the end result of what we are sharing, our ethical implications. I think it comes down to thinking and evaluating before acting or sharing. Step outside of your box and analyze what you are saying from all perspectives. One day I hope to have a career in photography and graphic design. In this field you produce several forms of media, an example is advertisements. Within these advertisements are verbal and visual elements produced by photographers and illustrators to communicate a message. It is important to understand that even though we have free speech, there is ethical speech that needs to be consider when producing advertisement, we need to make sure we are sharing truth and facts, not just what we want to say. Advertisements are shared to get messages out there, and if you lie and put misleading information, it can have the potential to harm people. Think about being a consumer of media, would you rather be getting the truth and facts or just receiving other peoples biases? I am thankful we have the freedom of speech, but we must consider our actions when using it.
Trisha
Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Freedom of speech. In Merriam-Webster.com dictionary. Retrieved October 13, 2020, from https://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/freedom%20of%20speech
COM 130 Ethics and Free Speech in Communication. (n.d.). Southern New Hampshire University. Retrieved from http://snhu- media.snhu.edu/files/course_repository/undergraduate/com/com130/com130_ethics_
Peer 2
Free Speech: the right to express any opinions without censorship or restraint.
Ethical Speech: not plagiarize their material or try to pass off words and ideas from others as their own.
While giving an ethical speech you can use your free speech, but all free speeches aren’t ethically made. Many times on modern-day social media posts are made on a whim, and not much thought is put into them. They can get quite dicey, without having citations or a good amount of facts to back them up, social posts can be made on a whim with the information gathered from a passing friend. Being ethical can help one fight against the bias of online communication. We live in a world with a very strong sense of right and wrong with the grey area seemingly getting smaller and smaller. Being prosumers I must ensure that what I post isn’t just strictly my opinion, but that of a shared quality. I personally don’t like this idea becasue if my idea truly is a new one, then it would be increasingly hard to try and validate it. Since I am going to try and be a graphic designer for a larger corporation I must maintain ethical standards. If someone mis-quotes or mis-cites something it could potentially turn into a huge lawsuit. Whether or not your true intentions were to be unethical it can still represent not only yourself but the company as a whole.
