Ethics in Public Speaking
When we consider an action as ethical it means that it is consistent with your beliefs and a set of actions or behaviors that others in your community consider "right" not "wrong".
The reason we look at ethics in relation to public speaking has to do with a power structure.
"Information is power!"
When people abuse power they are behaving unethically.
So, if you use the information to harm the audience or abuse the power you have as a speaker in any other way, you are behaving unethically.
An ethical speaker communicates to benefit his or her audience.
There are, therefore, rules that dictate what we consider ethical behavior in public speaking and when we are discussing them here at CALU we must consider them in light of the core values of Integrity, Civility and Responsibility.
As a speaker you need to create and maintain your integrity.
The best way to do this is to prepare carefully and thoroughly.
Ethics in public speaking is relevant only in terms of the audience.
Your ethical obligation is to them (as well as to yourself).
It would be considered unethical if you do anything to manipulate them or to waste their time and resources.
You must respect the time and intelligence of your audience. Good preparation is, therefore, an ethical obligation.
Guidelines for Ethical Speeches
Choose topics that benefit the audience.
Many speakers think only about themselves when they are planning a speech.
They ask, "what can I talk about?" "What am I interested in?" This is unethical.
An ethical speaker considers what their audience needs to know about a topic or what will benefit the audience and structures their speech with the best interests of the audience in mind.
Choose topics that promote ethical behaviors in your audience.
It would be considered unethical to present a speech encouraging your audience to do something that is immoral or illegal such as conducting a speech on how to download music or movies illegally from the Internet.
Be truthful and do not mislead your audience.
Do not omit information so that your audience gets only a partial view of the topic and do not invent information.
In other words don't lie by omission or fabrication.
Identify for your audience your motivation for speaking.
It would be considered unethical to convince your audience to buy a product or join an organization when you would be paid for recruiting them if you do not tell them that you are being paid to sell the product.
Be well informed about your topic.
A speaker can never expect to know everything there is to know about the topic but an ethical speaker will find out as much as possible about the topic including both sides of the issue so they can present the topic fairly to the audience.
Always identify the sources of your information.
Do not include information in your speech that consists of the ideas or words of someone else without identifying where the information comes from -- That is considered to be plagiarism.
Check your sources.
Always check to be sure the information you are reporting is truthful and up-to-date.
Be sure you are using reliable sources for information.
Remember not everything you read on the internet is the truth.
Differentiate opinion from fact.
Make sure that you understand the difference between what is a fact, a theory, or an opinion.
Even when you are quoting an expert in the field they may only be saying their opinion and it may not be proved or confirmed.
Base your conclusions on verifiable facts and make sure your logic is sound.
Be careful to consider all aspects of your topic so that you are presenting factual information in a way that is logical and clear for the audience to follow.
Present information that is appropriate for the audience and the occasion.
Do not speak down to the audience or use information that they are unable to comprehend.
Do not waste their time by speaking about topics they already know.
Make sure you remember their right to be treated with respect.
Practice your presentation aloud.
Many people do not realize that they have a responsibility to their audience to present their best work.
You cannot be at your best in public speaking if you do not practice your speech numerous times so that you are familiar with it and will not confuse or bore your audience.
An ethical speaker has a responsibility to be genuine.
It would be considered unethical to speak about something that you do not believe in or to misrepresent your knowledge, experience or associations regarding your topic.
Do not put your audience at risk by encouraging them to do something that would endanger them physically, emotionally, or even economically.
So you would not want to encourage them to invest in a bad scheme for example.
You would not want to encourage them to do something dangerous without identifying the risks.
Do not insult people or use inappropriate language.
It is definitely unethical to call people names or to insult or antagonize people who do not agree with you or are different from you.
These may be people in your audience, people who are speaking on the opposite side of the topic, or who you consider to be "the enemy" such as people from a different political party.
Improving your public speaking skills is considered ethical behavior because you are striving to be better at public speaking and therefore improving your ability to present information in an ethical manner.