Weekly Topics

Sep 10

Week 1 - Course Introduction:

Ethical relativism vs. Ethical Objectivism

a. Introduction to the course: Syllabus

b. What is ethics and why haven’t I studied

philosophy yet?

c. Right, wrong, less wrong, less right, more

wrong, more right

Sep 17

Week 2 - Ethics Meets Philosophy:

This Fabricated Story Actually Reveals Your True Essence! Are You Horrible or Good?

a. Sign up for weekly discussion leads in our

online class meeting

b. Ethic of Care: Introduction

c. Sharon leads discussion about ethical

relativism and ethical objectivism


Readings due at class meeting times

2. Do the “Should You Kill The Fat Man” Philosophy Experiment:

http://www.philosophyexperiments.com/fatman/Default.aspx

4. Run-on sentences: Pay attention to the comma splice:

https://grammar.yourdictionary.com/sentences/run-on-sentences.html

Sep 24

Week 3 - Relationship vs. Justice

Class group leads case study discussion on cat-fishing

Readings due at class meeting times


1. Heinz Dilemma

2. Watch/interact with this YouTube video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALE5H9Byms0

3. Listen to this radio program: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/b008drfq

5. Case study activity for Week 3 is outlined in Canvas in the Modules section

Oct 1

Week 4

Class group leads case study discussion on Aylan Kurdi case

Readings due at class meeting times


1. Durham, M. G. (2018). Resignifying Alan Kurdi: News photographs, memes, and the ethics of embodied vulnerability, Critical Studies in Media Communication, 35(3), 240-258, DOI: 10.1080/15295036.2017.1408958

3. Case study activity for Week 4 is in Canvas

Oct 8

Week 5

Class group leads case study discussion on social media blunders

Readings due at class meeting times


2. Bowen, S. (2013). Using classic social media cases to distill ethical guidelines for digital engagement. Journal of Mass Media Ethics, 28, 119-133. (in Canvas)

3. Case study activity for Week 5 is in the Modules section of Canvas

Oct 22

Week 6 - Privacy:

Class group leads case study discussion on the Cuomo brothers

Readings due at class meeting times


1. Pech, G. & Liebel, R. (2006). Writing in solidarity: Toward an ethic of care for Journalism. Journal of Mass Media Ethics2, 21(2&3), 141-155

2. Please read several of the articles that are at the end of the case study for this week. Choose as many as you like – the quantity is up to you. But please watch this video – it is one of my favourites and I love the “no” refrain: https://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2020/03/31/governor-andrewcuomo-run-for-president-cpt-vpx.cnn

3. Case study activity Week 6 is in Canvas in the Modules section

Oct 29

Week 7 - New Media

Class group leads case study on photo shopping and “fake news”

Readings due at class meeting times


5. Jutras, Opinions are a risky business:

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/technology/opinions-are-a-risky-business-in-the-twitterverse/article1389196/

6. Case study in BB (always due by Friday at noon)

Nov 5

Week 8

There is no written case study for this week –

there will be a lot going on with the US

election! Please stay informed of the news, as

I’m sure that there will be a lot happening AND

much of it will relate to this course. We will

meet online at 2.10 on 5 November and will

address the election in the US together with

progress in watching the Browder series.

Sharon will lead this discussion.

Readings due at class meeting times


A choice:

Please watch 13th, which is available for free, and is a film that everyone in

western contemporary society should see. If you choose option 2 and don’t

watch it as part of this course, put it on your list!

If you have a Netflix subscription, you can watch TIME: The Kalief Browder

Story. There are 6 episodes, all of which are entirely gripping.

If you find this kind of stuff interesting, watch them both! And if you are

really keen on this sort of ethical issue (the intersection of media ethics and

race) as I am, try watching When They See Us, LA92, The Rachel Divide, and

others that I can recommend if you are interested!

Nov 12

Week 9

Kalief Browder/13th

One group will address the Browder case

study, and the other will address the case

study questions in 13th

Case study activity for Week 9 is in Canvas in the Modules section.

Nov19

Week 10

One group will address question 1, and another group will address question 2

Readings due at class meeting times


1. Ringrose, J., Harvey, L., Gill, R. & Livingstone, S. (2013). Teen girls, sexual double standards, and ‘sexting’: Gendered value in digital image exchange. Feminist Theory 14(3), 305-323. (In Canvas)

2. Plank, 7 Ways for women to disappear: http://www.vox.com/2016/9/9/12816180/women-disappear-men-policing (be sure to watch the video!)

5. Case study activity for Week 10 is in Canvas in the Modules section

3. Hasinoff, A. A. (2017). Sexting and privacy violations: A case study of sympathy and blame. International Journal of Cyber Criminology, 11(2), 202- 217. Retrieved from https://www.cybercrimejournal.com/Hasinoffvol11issue2IJCC2017.pdf. DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.1037391 (In Canvas)

Nov 26

Week 11 - Art and Entertainment:

Class group leads discussion on the ethics of filtering

Readings due at class meeting times


1. Jill Walker Rettberg, Filtered Reality: https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1057%2F9781137476661_2.pdf (I also put a .pdf of this chapter in Canvas)

3. Case study activity for Week 11 is in Canvas in the Modules section



Dec 2

Week 12 - Epic Finale: During our regular online meeting time (2:10 PM Thursday)

Open Book Event

This is an open-book event. Please bring your notes on all of the concepts, themes, events, and frameworks that we discussed this semester. You may bring EVERYTHING that you have, and I suggest getting together with your group to create a comprehensive summary (“cheat sheet” or “survival guide”) so that you can access information easily.