So, what do the others think....??

Ethics and codes of conduct fall closely in line with professionalism, especially in relation to the practitioners own set of values and principles. Since it is argued by Maloney, 2000, that PR is ‘week propaganda’ it is perceived as a persuasive and manipulative activity, it is apparent that a lack of ethics lowers the reputation of public relations. Thus, although this maybe difficult, to actually enforce a set of professional codes would enhance the reputation of PR. “Conveying information in a persuasive way, does not excuse the presentation of false or misleading information. In sum, you have to ask not only whether something is legal but whether it is the right thing to do” (Wilcox, 2001: P.108). Wilcox argues that a practitioner has to do more than just to obey the law. Personal values and public interest must also be taken into consideration. By doing so the practice of public relations may be perceived as more of a profession.

The concept of professional codes of conduct was introduced as early as the 1920’s. This is highlighted by the book written by Berney’s, ‘Propaganda’. Within his book, he presented a code of ethics for the profession, starting with the principle “that a PR man refuses a client whom he believes dishonest, a product which he believes fraudulent or a cause which he believes to be antisocial” (Tye, 1998: P. 99). Therefore, according to Berney’s, acting in an immoral manor is totally unacceptable and would be rejected by the industry. Professionalism develops with a profession practiced by a person where standards are established. When law became an established profession, inevitably those who practiced it would meet to exchange ideas about who, what, when, why, where and how they practice what they do. After time they agree that standards need to be set to ensure consistency. Standards however, may not be enforceable and there will be those who may not wish to subscribe to them. In line with the concept of professionalism, Black, 1969 used the idea of a ‘qualifying doctor’ as an analogy when describing PR practitioners. He stated that when a doctor qualifies, he/she would have completed long studies and training courses in order for them to acquire the knowledge they need to qualify. They are also expected to ‘subscribe to Hippocratic Oath’, which is a form of professional conduct. Similarly, PR practitioners are also expected to do the same. They are expected to ‘acquire sound knowledge in media and methods of art’ and ‘should subscribe to an accepted code of professional conduct’ (Black, 1969 p.12).

When members of a profession come together to talk (e.g. different companies etc) they may decide to establish codes of conduct to weed out bad apples that give the profession a ‘bad name’ and to ensure the reputation is held in high esteem. Furthermore, after a time, as more people join in, they form unions, societies, associations. Eventually, they may go for chartered institute status. Thus, it can be argued that codes of conducts are born out of professionalism (general agreed accepted standards practiced by professionals belonging to a profession.)