PUBLIC RELATIONS
Professional Ethics: The
Achilles Heel!
By Irene Mbonge
S
imply put, Ethics is what guides
the proper course of action for
professionals and indeed for human
beings everywhere. Ethics answers the
question ‘What do I do’. It can be defined
as the study of right and wrong in human
endeavors. At a more fundamental level, it
is the method by which we categorize our
values and pursue them.
According to the Chartered Institute of
Public Relations, Ethical competence
in the practice of Public Relations,
for instance, is based on a foundation
of regulation and on the individual’s
knowledge and technical competencies.
This means that professionals must apply
their knowledge and technical abilities
ethically. It also means that ethical and
technical competencies in the professional
practice should ultimately be supported
by the use of research, solid statistics and
surveys. or uncaring, good or bad, responsible or
irresponsible, and so on.
Ethics is generally important in human
life because it guides our thoughts and
consequently our actions. Ethics is
concerned with how we should live our
lives. It focuses on questions about what
is right or wrong, fair or unfair, caring As professionals, recognizing, facing and
dealing with ethical dilemmas in our
everyday work life are the three most
important aspects of the realities of
ethics. In their role as boundary spanners
between organizations and their publics,
it is the role of every PR practitioner to
counsel management or the dominant
coalition on the best course of action,
based on facts and the truth on issues, and
with full consideration of ethical issues.
As professionals, recognizing, facing and
dealing with ethical dilemmas in our ev-
eryday work life are the three most im-
portant aspects of the realities of eth-
ics. In their role as boundary spanners
between organizations and their publics,
it is the role of every PR practitioner to
counsel management or the dominant co-
alition on the best course of action, based
on facts and the truth on issues, and with
full consideration of ethical issues.
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MAL28/19 ISSUE
The Chartered Institute of Public
Relations code of conduct outlines the
principles of good conduct as Integrity,
Competence, Transparency, avoiding
conflict of interest and confidentiality.
Different Schools Of
Thought
The principle behind professional ethics is
that one’s actions are designed to create
the greatest good for both the client and
the community as a whole rather than to
enhance the position and power of one
over the other.
Utilitarianism
Several approaches to ethics have been
advanced by early philosophers and