© 2005 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 1 Chapter 5 Weighing the Ethical Issues Technical Communication, 10/e John M. Lannon

© 2005 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 2 Major Causes of Unethical Communication  Yielding to social pressure groupthink  Mistaking groupthink for teamwork Question: Do you think “objective reporting” exists?

© 2005 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 3 Understanding Abuse of Communication  Suppressing knowledge the public needs  Hiding conflicts of interest  Exaggerating claims about technology  Falsifying or fabricating data (continued on next slide)

© 2005 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 4 Understanding Abuse of Communication  Using visuals that conceal the truth  Stealing or divulging proprietary information  Misusing electronic information  Withholding information people need for their jobs  Exploiting cultural differences

© 2005 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 5 Rely on Critical Thinking Reasonable criteria for ethical judgment:  Obligations  Ideals  Consequences Ethical dilemmas

© 2005 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 6 Legal Guidelines (But Never Depend Solely on Them…)  Laws against deception  Libel law  Laws protecting employee privacy  Copyright law  Law against software theft (continued on next slide)

© 2005 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 7 Legal Guidelines (But Never Depend Solely on Them…)  Law against electronic theft  Laws against stealing or revealing trade secrets  Laws against fraudulent, deceptive or misleading advertising  Liability laws

© 2005 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 8 Decide Where and How to Draw the Line Consequences of whistleblowing  Weigh the consequences of whistleblowing or being forced into unethical behavior. You will be better off just leaving the job rather than possibly going to jail (it HAS happened).

© 2005 Pearson Education, Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers. 9 Any questions? For additional help reviewing this chapter, please visit the Companion Website for your text at