Does it bother you that our police are always lying to the suspects
on tv? It bugs the heck out of me. Is this reality? If so do we really
want a culture where no one trusts the police because they consistently lie?
If they lie to the other guy are they lying to you?
An interesting new college model - Minerva
10 years ago
Here is a response we got via email from Dr. Pete Melhus, Assistant Professor at San Francisco State University:
ReplyDeleteOne of the classes I teach addresses business ethics but it’s an exaggeration to call it an ethics class. When we discuss ethics we discuss it in the context of three models of ethical reasoning, the utilitarian method, the rights methods and the justice method.
Utilitarianism seeks to find a solution that produces the greatest amount of good for the greatest number of people. The Rights method seeks to avoid solutions that violate a person’s fundamental human right to life, happiness, choice and learning. The Justice method seeks a solution that is both just and fair.
If an action is deemed to be ethical or unethical under all three methods of ethical reasoning it’s a pretty good bet that it’s ethical or unethical. Those are the easy ones to determine. It’s when something can be deemed ethical under one or two of these methods that we have a bit of a dilemma.
If I were to apply these methods of ethical reasoning to your case of lying to the public to “find the truth,” more specifics would be necessary. What kind of “truth” is involved? Is it something related to whether Joe is having an affair with Sally or is it related to national security? If it’s the former, it’s unethical in my opinion, not to mention completely irrelevant.
The latter case needs some soul-searching. From a utilitarianism perspective, lying in this case is ethical in my opinion because the truth will provide the greatest good for the greatest number of people. Under the Rights method it may or may not be ethical. It depends on the lie. In your lie do you deprive people of their fundamental rights? If so, it’s unethical. Under the Justice method, it against depends on the lie. If it’s a so-called “white lie” it may indeed be just and fair, e.g., “things will be fine,” when you know there’s a good chance they won’t be. If you are telling people that smoking is not bad for the health, then it’s not just or fair.
So, not surprisingly my long answer to your short question is that “it depends” on the “truth” and on the “lie.” I have to say that I was tempted to answer your question “yes” or “no” and get it out of my inbox. However, I’m treating it like a serious question so it needed a serious answer.
Also, it’s important to remember that ethics are a very personal thing. I might consider something to be ethical that you consider unethical. That’s why we have these debates on things like abortion, gay marriage, etc.