Sensibility and Self-denial: A Christian Evaluation of Journalistic Care Ethics and Traditional Ethics

Abstract

Traditional ethical models within journalism have upheld truth and objectivity as the highest standard, based on a conglomeration of Western ethical traditions. However, as the age of subjective moral reasoning ushered in skepticism and independently subjective philosophies, ethicists have examined the application of care ethics to the field of journalism. Scholars have viewed care ethics and traditional ethics as conflicting theories, but both contain elements of God’s nature as revealed in the Bible. Both models also harbor secularized elements. In a biblical analysis of the two systems and their underlying assumptions, this thesis identifies crucial biblical differences in their views on human nature, truth, social relationships, and the purpose of journalism. It concludes that traditional ethics adequately deals with a biblical view of human nature, while care ethics leaves itself vulnerable in a fallen world. By combining the positive aspects of the two systems, this thesis is able to suggest a basic profile of Christian ethical practice in journalism.