Honor System

When it comes to work, everyone communicates. Even if that is not their primary job or function, they still spend a good deal of their time communicating with others. In fact, how good of a job they do is often determined by how well they communicate information to others. This reality is one more example of how ingrained communicate is in the fabric in our work world. There is no place it is not. But in this particular world, there are two fields whose focus is precisely communication: the media and public relations. They more than any other carry the responsibility of sharing information and attempting to create linkages between publics.


All of us rely heavily on these communication fields. After all, how to carry out our days, how we interact with others and how we view our surroundings, including the world itself, is largely based on the information, ideas, etc. made available to us by the media and public relations professions. To say the least, if these industries suddenly ceased to exist, then our world on multiple levels would quickly become darker and much more limited. The bottom line, then, is that both the media and public relations are vital to society. The better those in these professions do their jobs, the better the rest of us are served and society is able to function.


Given that, it is interesting that the media and public relations carry out their responsibilities largely under sets of guidelines or standards that are not legally binding in any way. Those in the media are asked to adhere to the Canons of Journalism that was adopted in 1923 by the American Society of Newspaper Editors. Public relations practitioners that belong to the Public Relations Society of America are expected to follow its Code of Ethics, most recently updated in 2000. While both documents call for adherence to such values as honesty, fairness and integrity, practitioners are free to do their jobs free of any legal fallout. In the eyes of their colleagues, they function under the honor system. With their fields being so significant and far-reaching, is simply appealing to their "inner angels" enough of a safeguard?