Ethics in Communications

The Pontifical Council for Social Communications (PCSC) issued a document on June 4, 2000 concerning the ethics of social media communication. Ethics in Communications outlines the use of media and its importance as a pervasive and powerful tool of communicating. The article discusses the many outlets of media and communication such as books and periodicals, television and radio, films and videos, and increasingly important, the Internet. The Catholic Church discusses the ethical evaluation of the media and social communication as a violation of the good of the person. Ethics in Communication mentions the negative implications of the media and states that it contributes to “the injustices and imbalances that give rise to suffering they report.”^[1] The Church in short summarizes the media as an outlet of good and evil, and there is a choice regarding its intentions.

I. Introduction

Humans can choose to use media for either great good or for great evil and the ethical questions that arise from the choices are the responsibility of all those who utilize, receive and regulate social communication. With an ever-growing media culture, the impact and influence of social media is becoming more expansive as more people, events, opinions, and values are coming into contact and being shared across multiple borders. The given range and multiplicity of content that people can access is able grow closer in community with others or become insulated in a material world with drug-like effects. In this new age of communication, the Church, with her wisdom and knowledge of human dignity and communicator of the Gospel message, which is grounded in God’s communication of love through Christ Jesus, wishes to prevent the readily accessed information from being of little worth to humanity, but instead wishes to promote it, and support those who are professionally invested, as a means to lift humanity to its highest calling, which is to know God.

II. Social Communication that Serves the Human Person

According to past Church documents, Gadium et Spes and Communio et Progressio, the role of the media to is promote the dignity of all persons and perform together as a community. “Media do this by encouraging men and women to be conscious of their dignity, enter into the thoughts and feelings of others, cultivate a sense of mutual responsibility, and grow in personal freedom, in respect for other’s freedom, and in the capacity for dialogue"^[2]. The Church wishes to briefly define some economic, political, cultural, educational, and religious benefits.

Economic: Social communication, through a variety of means, supports economic development, prosperity and responsible competition between different parties, ultimately serving the public interest so that they can make knowledgeable decisions about products and services.

Political: Social communication informs citizens about the political arena, including issues, events, individuals in power and candidates running for office, thereby enabling to participate in public governance. It allows individuals to follow the leadership of the government in times of urgency and holding them accountable to the responsibilities of their duties.

Cultural: Use of social communication allows individuals to interact with their cultural traditions in a variety of forms thereby promoting the beauty of human development. Varieties are not limited to academics or works of history but also that which enables daily living to be more enjoyable for all individuals.

Educational: Both within and outside of the classroom, for individuals at all stages of life, social media promotes humans to be lifelong learners as the accumulation of knowledge and information continues to increasingly and exponentially expand.

Religious: With all other aspects of life influenced by social communications, naturally that which belongs to the religious sphere would not be exempted. Catechesis and evangelization of the faithful can be done through social communication on a scale, including over great geographic distances, never seen before that has the ability to promote a global community. True communication, that which services the communal nature of people, is that which gives oneself in love and consequently promotes the common good, mutual interdependence, and the dignity and freedom of all individuals.

IV. Some Relevant Ethical Principles

Ethical principles that the Church and society promotes in other disciplines can be adapted to the field of social communication. The principles of “solidarity, justice and equity, and accountability in the use of public resources and the performance of roles of public trust^[3]" are required to build an authentic community of persons. It is important to remember that ethical questions must be asked in regards to the message, the media of communication, and the policies that govern how the system operates based on its internal structures. All members concerned with social media need to have an honest reflection and exchange so that the person and community are both the “end and measure of the use of the media of social communication^[4]”, aiming to bring about the “integral development of persons^[5]”.

Social communication should never separate the good of individuals from the shared good of the communities in which they belong to, nor should it promote one group at the expense of another. The role and responsibility of those in social media and those whose job it is to design policy need to address the genuine interests of the various individuals and their communities. The North and South divide is a good example where the unequal distribution of information and required infrastructure furthers the unequal distribution of goods that are essential for economic development and prosperity. Moreover, due to the fact that social communication is extremely influential, those involved at the governing level should be cognizant of those who, at times, are marginalized or forgotten by society so that social communication, or its absence, does not promote the presence of evil in the world. Freedom of expression, a natural right, should be protected, except when its use would cause harm or indignity to another individual or group.

True social communication does not happen when communication only travels in one way. Appreciating this, those who work in social communication need to know their audience by employing strategies that are not limited to market and economic results because these variables cannot be trusted to honestly hear the whole community in equity or those who are counted with the minority. Niche markets do serve a purpose, but when the arena of social communication becomes too disseminated into specialized streams, it fails to be an “‘areopagus’; a forum for exchanging ideas and information, drawing individuals and groups together, fostering solidarity and peace”^[6].

Responsibility does not rest solely on those who create social media, but those who receive it should be able, through a modern media education, to responsibility select that social communication which meets ethical criteria. Due to the fact that the contents of media and social communication are often in conflict with the Gospel values, families would find it beneficial to become “discerning viewers and listeners and readers” of social media so only that which is of positive benefit may be utilized.

As a role model for the world, the Church, in its use with social media, should hold itself to the highest standard and should promote what it teaches about truth and the meaning of human life, and use it to share the Gospel. In all matters, members of the Church, at all levels, must always answer the questions that are asked in the most truthful way so that the Church may speak and be received with credibility by people. If the Church is to engage with the media in an authentic way, then it would benefit those who serve her to have training in social communications. Such training will allow believers to continue their missionary roles into this new environment.

V. Conclusion

The creation of this global network through social media has created an environment for the “instantaneous transmission of information, ideas, and value judgements.” ^[7] The Church plays an active role “in the face of this crisis,” ^[8] in order to monitor and regulate these media outlets. The document proposes the notion of ethical standards in which social communication requires. The Catholic Church discusses limitations in which should be placed on this pervasive tool and the economic, educational, cultural, political, and religious implications that follow from lack thereof. It is the task and responsibility of those communicators to reach an understanding of a standard of social communication.

Footnotes

^ Pontifical Council for Social Communications, "Ethics in Communications." Last modified June 04, 2000. Accessed September 20 , 2013. http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/pccs/documents/rc_pc_pccs_doc_20000530_ethics-communications_en.html
^ Ibid., "II. Social Communications that Serves the Human Person"
^ Ibid., "IV. Some Relevant Ethical Principles"
^ Ibid., "IV. Some Relevant Ethical Principles"
^ Ibid., "IV. Some Relevant Ethical Principles"
^ Ibid., "IV. Some Relevant Ethical Principles"
^ Ibid., “V. Conclusion”
^ Ibid., “V. Conclusion”

Bibliography

Pontifical Council for Social Communications, "Ethics in Communications." Last modified June 04, 2000. Accessed September 20 , 2013. http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/pccs/documents/rc_pc_pccs_doc_20000530_ethics-communications_en.html

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