I have talked about ethics before on several different occasions, but how do we really know what is ethical and what is not?
Merriam-Webster describes ethical as:
- Ethical
- Conforming to accepted standards of conduct.
Accepted standards? What the hell does that mean?
Image by chrisschuepp
Basically, what others see as ethical is ethical. Now, this can get confusing. In some places child labor is ethical, others it is unethical. Some places prostitution is ethical, others not. So you see the dilemma. Deciding what is ethical and what isn’t is mostly up to us as marketers and webmasters; however, there are some instances that are never considered ethical.
In order to stay in line, here are a few things to remember when creating a website:
- No prejudice
- No discrimination
- Don’t make money off serious illnesses, Mesothelioma, brain cancer
- Don’t scrape websites
- Don’t make money off good peoples agony
- Don’t spam
- Don’t use tons of ads
- Don’t be misleading
- Don’t post just to make money
- Don’t recommend poor products
- Don’t offer poor products
And also remember the good:
- Offer quality content
- Be yourself
- Be true to your friends/family
- Offer quality products
- Recommend only quality products
- Give what you say you will give
Of course, ethics can also be funny. In that case, throw out everything I just said. Write that article about the Pope molesting Nigerian prostetutes living in Long Island and never look back!
Written: Oct 11, 2008
Dennis Edell
October 13, 2008 @ 1:14 am
Speaking as a Catholic Long Islander….oh nevermind, great post!
I’d (personally speaking) say that it sounded a lot like you confused Ethical with Legal in the two examples above.
They may be legal in certain parts of the world, but that doesn’t make them ethical anywhere…..a fine line for sure.
“If it feels wrong, it probably is”…my code.
Gary R. Hess
October 13, 2008 @ 2:03 am
@Dennis Edell, I didn’t confuse them
Child labor was often seen as the norm, and still is in many places. Many families didn’t feel it was wrong to send their 12 year old to the mines or to the field. Hell, many still don’t today. It is unethical in some parts of the United States… but not all. It also depends on the situation I suppose. Just about every family in my hometown worked their children as young as possible on their farms.
The same goes for drinking alcohol. It is seen as unethical in many areas, religions, and such, but completely ethical in others. Hell, it is celebrated in March and Oktober.
Prostitution, well, concubines were quite popular in the early 1900s and before. Prostitution was all over the place before that. It was looked down upon by certain groups, sure, and it still is today. However, also the word choice changes peoples minds. What gives you the worse feeling, ‘prostitute’ or ‘escort’?
I could go even further with this… underage sex. Is it OK for a 30 year old man to have sex with a 14 year old? What about a 16 year old and 14 year old? What is *really* the difference?
Most of this goes along with ‘modernity’.
Ethics is a personal/social thing. Marijuana is another great issue. Is it bad or not? Well, it depends on your society. Nudity is another. Women rights, another. I could go on forever.
Dennis Edell
October 13, 2008 @ 5:09 am
You’re not really comparing “little Mac and Daisy” helpin’ out on the family farm to child labor laws, are ya? LOL
Periapex
October 13, 2008 @ 7:11 am
There’s a simple rule that I follow at work when dealing with patients: Treat everyone better than you would want someone to treat you.
That makes any ethical dilemma much less of a dilemma.
Gary R. Hess
October 13, 2008 @ 11:14 am
@Dennis Edell I’m not sure how you think it is any different. It is child labor either way. The fact that you think it is different is exactly what my point.
Work is work. If a 12 year old worked in an office as a secretary, that is still child labor. The same as a 12 year old throwing hay on a wagon or driving a tractor for hours on end, milking cows, etc. It is labor. But is it seen as child labor? No, and definitely not to the farming families. However, what makes that different than sending a child somewhere else to work to do the same thing? If the child was sent to another persons farm, is that still right?
Anyway, it is all about the question and not the answer. The fact that you think it is OK while if they do something else it is wrong is the reason why I wrote that portion of the article. Double standards according to how you were raised.
Dennis Edell
October 13, 2008 @ 5:39 pm
I got more if ya like