MODULE- 2

Lesson 7- LEGAL, ETHICAL, AND SOCIETAL ISSUES IN MEDIA AND INFORMATION

To become a media and information literate individual, you must know the legal, ethical, and societal issues
associated with the consumption and production of media information, and put the proper ways of consuming
and producing information into practice.

The Philippine media are often called one of the free, if not the freest, in the globe. Filipinos have long
fought for freedom of speech and expression, as shown by many collective actions in the country’s history.

Media have become significant part of Filipinos’ lives where they source most of the information they
acquire. The internet even made people not just consumers, but producers of information as well.

Ethical vs. Legal

According to research scholar P. Vasantha Kumar, the concepts of ethics and law are similar, but in a
complex manner. The two words are closely related and are sometimes used interchangeably.

Law, in a general perspective, is a set of universally accepted rules, accepted and enforced within a
certain territory or entity. The Philippines, as a democratic form of government, is governed by a
constitution, which is supported by different laws on matters of administrative, civil, and criminal
aspects
Ethics, a word derived from the latin ethikos meaning “character,” defines how individuals prefer to
interact with one another (Kurman, n.d.). Ethics is related to the moral obligation of knowing what is
right and wrong that guides people to choose what is accepted over unaccepted, and to do what needs
to be done and what is just.

Unlike with laws, people cannot be compelled to follow or to subscribe to all ethical behaviour, hence
cannot be enforced not all things legal are ethical, and vice versa. For example, a businessman pays a journalist
to advertise his products in the latter’s column. The law does not prohibit the journalist to receive the task, so if
the journalist accepts the job, it is technically legal. However, envelopment journalism, or the practice of bribing
journalists, is unethical. A journalist wants to expose a corrupt politician by getting the latter’s bank transaction
records as proof. The law says that what the journalist is about to do is theft and is subject to sanction, but
revealing corruption for the benefit of the many can be considered ethical.

Both laws and ethics are important aspects to sustain a stable and harmonious society, applicable to all
walks of life and professions. These to concepts are important in keeping the stability, balance, and welfare in
the society of diversity and differences.

Issues on Intellectual Property

Today, it is easy to acquire materials from the cyberspace, which also makes it easier for people to copy and
steal others’ works and declare them as their own. At one or some points in time, you have (un) consciously
used another person’s work without notice. When you do research without citing references, you are violating
the owner of the work that you have used. For you to practice ethical and legal use of information, you should
be knowledgeable on the basics of intellectual property.
 Anything that a person creates, designs, or invents that can be treated as an asset or physical property is
his/her intellectual property or IP (The UK Copyright Service, n.d.). As the World Intellectual Property
Organization (WIPO) puts it, IP is any “creation of the mind” The drawings, essays, and poems you do as
academic requirements are just some of your intellectual properties.

Copyright

Copyright is the exclusive legal right of an IP owner to reproduce, sell, or distribute a material that he/she
has created. Not only can an IP owner manufacture or sell copies of his/her material, he/she can also prevent
others from doing the same.

Netiquette: Ethics on the Internet

People of different ages and cultures flock social media, search engines, and other websites every day. It
cannot be helped hat social conflicts arise due to opposite opinions and beliefs. This is why the practice of
netiquette is significant for every person on the internet.

Netiquette is a body of conventions and manners in using the internet as a tool for data and communication
exchange (Tedre, Kampurri, and Kommers, 2006). The word “netiquette” comes from the words “network”
(internet) and “etiquette” (Chiles, 2013), thereby making it the social guidelines on the internet.

Virginia Shea (1994), in her book Netiquette (as mentioned by Richard Craig, 2005), said that there are core
rules and general guidelines in interacting the cyberspace. These are the following.

1. Remember the human- The first guideline id aligned with the golden rule “Do not do to others what you do
not want others to do unto you.” Imagine how you would feel if you were in another person’s shoes. There is
nothing wrong for standing up for yourself, but always remember not to hurt other people’s feelings. Try not
to be offensive by being careful in choosing the words you share on the internet.

2. Adhere to the same standards of behavior online that you follow in real life- Be ethical. Follow the standards
of cyberspace as you abide the laws of society.

3. Know where you are in cyberspace- The principles of netiquette may vary based on the domain; what is
acceptable for you may not be acceptable for others. If you are new on a cyberspace domain, try to fit and
learn the nature.

4. Respect other people’s time and bandwidth- Be sure that what you share is worthy of the audience’s time
and avoid creating disturbances in the bandwidths of the internet.

5. Make yourself look good online- Pay attention to the content of writing. Be sure you know what you are
talking about. Always be clear and logical.

6. Share expert knowledge- Do not be afraid to share what you know.

7. Help keep flame wars under control- “Flaming” is what people do when they express a strongly held opinion
without holding back any emotion.

8. Respect other people’s privacy- Make sure not to invade others’ privacy.

9. Do not abuse your power- Knowing more than others do, or having more power than they do, does not give
you the right to take advantage of them.
Societal Issues in the Information Age

According to Keniston and Kumar (2003), the last decades brought the world in a technologically-driven
revolution, which resulted to the Information Age.

This technological revolution inspired hopes that it might bring or soon will bring transparency, market
rationalization, and universal access to information, establishment of international communities, and the
improvement of human life- hopes that cause or will cause both positive and adverse issues in societies, not just
in the Philippines, but in the world.

Digital Divide

Digital divide may also pertain to the gap between the younger and older generations in terms of
technological use. People born to the middle to late 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s belong to the “Internet
Generation” or sometimes also called “Digital Generation,” “Net Generation,” or the “Millennials.” They grew up
in the presence of arising technology unlike the previous generation. Because of this, the younger generation
became more internet- and technology-savvy than their parents, teachers, and older members of the society
(Herring, 2008).

Internet Addiction

The revolutionary growth of the internet in the past decades created a huge impact on the communication
and interpersonal behavior of every human being (Sato, 2006). In many cases, this even led to addiction, which
affects an internet user’s psychological well-being, performance, and personal interaction.

There are five types of internet addiction: (1) cyber sexual addiction to adult chat rooms or cyber porn; (2)
cyber relationship addiction to online friendships or affairs that replace real-life situations; (3) net compulsions
to online gambling, auctions, or obsessive trading; (4) information overload to compulsive web surfing or
databases searches; (5) computer addiction to game playing or programming (Young, 1998).

Cyber-bullying

Internet changed how people interact. Even indiscretion is now practiced online. Traditional bullying
became cyberbullying, or the intimidation, oppression, harassment, and discrimination done via information and
communications technology (ICT) (Besley, 2004)

Today, cyber-bullying has become more rampant than the old one for offenders can hide their identities and
secure their anonymity on the internet, allowing them to strike their blows to their victims without receiving
physical response.

There are various ways in which cyber-bullying may occur (Williard, 2006).

• Flaming – sending angry, rude, vulgar messages directed at a person or persons privately or to an online
group.
• Harassment – repeatedly sending a person offensive messages.
• Cyber-stalking – harassment that includes threats or harm
• Denigration (put-downs) – sending or posting harmful, untrue, or cruel sttements about a person to
other people.
• Masquerade – pretending to be someone else; and sending or posting material(s) that portray(s) a
person or entity negatively
• Outing and trickery – sending or posting material about a person that contains sensitive, information,
including forwarding private messages or images
 • Exclusion – actions that specifically and intentionally exclude a person from an online group.

Cybercrime

Aside from cyber-bullying, other illegal acts happen within the internet. These acts include hacking,
cybersex, child pornography, identity theft, online libel, illegal access to data, online piracy, cybersquatting, and
other computer-related offenses.

In the Philippines, these criminal offenses are aimed to be restrained by RA 10175, or the Cybercrime
Prevention Act of 2012.

Freedom of information

One of the most pressing issues in recent years that is directly relevant to information usage is the freedom
of information, which has become a focus of heated debates for the past years. As part of transparency and
accountability measure, many organizations, especially in the media sector, have sought the passage of a
freedom of information bill that will allow the disclosure of all important public documents. This is also in line
with the specific provision in the Philippine Constitution (Article 3, section 7) that states:

The right of the people to information of matters of public concern shall be recognized. Access to official
records, and to documents and papers pertaining the official acts, transactions, or decisions, as well as to
government research data used as basis for policy development, shall be afforded the citizen, subject to such
limitations as may be provided by law

According to a research report produced by the Makati Business Club in July 2015, talks for an
institutionalized freedom of information already started in 1987, when the late Rep. Raul Roco filed a bill several
months after the new constitution was ratified. Several other bills, including proposed laws known as access to
Information Act, were filed to advance the people’s right to access information they need. In 2016, Pres. Rodrigo
Duterte passed the Freedom of Information Bill into Law.

Why is freedom of Information law important? This ensures that all information, including officials acts,
transaction, or decisions, as well as government research data used as a basis for policy development, regardless
of its physical form or format, will be made available for public consumption and scrutiny. This ensures that the
people are given the access to study, evaluate, and analyze government transactions that will, in turn, ensure
transparency in the government.
 SCHOLA CHRISTI, INC.
“School of Christ”
Maestrang Kikay, Talavera, Nueva Ecija

SCHOLITE’S WORKSHEET
MEDIA AND INFORMSTION LITERACY 12
LESSON: LEGAL, ETHICAL, AND SOCIETAL ISSUES IN MEDIA AND INFORMATION 2 ND
QUARTER – WEEK 1 to 4

NAME: __________________________________________ SCORE: _______________

GRADE: _____________________________________ DATE: _________________

I.OBJECTIVES
• Put into practice their understanding of intellectual property, copyright, and fair use guidelines;
• Demonstrate proper conduct and behaviour online; and
• Explain actions to promote ethical use of media and information.

II. REMEMBERING
Enumerate the various ways in which cyber-bullying may occur.
1. Boredom
2. Lack of empathy
3. Power hunger
4. Revenge
5. Peer pressure
6. Groupthink
7. Daring

Enumerate the core rules and general guidelines in interacting the cyberspace.
1. Don’t abuse your power
2. Make yourself look good online
3. Respect other people’s privacy
4. Be forgiving of other people’s mistakes
5. Share expert knowledge
6. Know where you are in cyberspace
7. Respect other people’s time and bandwidth
8. Adhere to the same standards of behavior online that you follow in real life
9. Help keep flame wars under control
III. UNDERSTANDING
Using the Venn Diagram Below, differentiate the Ethical and Legal and give its similarities.
Ethical Similarities Legal

IV. ANALYZING
Research about Marshall McLuhan’s essay, entitled “The Medium is the Message” from the book Understanding
Media: The Extensions of Man (1964).
Read the essay, then answer the questions that follow.

1. How will you explain McLuhan’s famed phrase, “the medium is the message”?

A statement by Marshall McLuhan, meaning that the form of a message determines the ways in which that
message will be perceived.

2. Do you agree with McLuhan’s opinion? Explain.

Yes, I do, Marshall McLuhan was right in saying that “the medium is the message.” The medium is not just a tool
to deliver the message; rather, it is the message itself. We are so accustomed to seeing the world around us
through the lens of cameras, that we have no choice but to believe we are nothing but just pieces on screen.

3. How did McLuhan explain the differences of the varied forms of media?

Marshall McLuhan created two categories: hot vs. cool media. Hot media is that which engages one sense
completely. … Cool media generally uses low-definition media that engages several senses less completely in
that it demands a great deal of interaction on the part of the audience.

4. Base on McLuhan’s aphorism, explain the impact of the internet on human communication.
 Marshall McLuhan made the prediction that we would have the internet. And this is what he said, “The next
medium, whatever it is, it may be the extension of consciousness, will include television as its content, not as its
environment.”

5. Is McLuhan’s argument still applicable in the present society?

McLuhan’s compares the global village to the central nervous system explaining that society is interconnected
by the influence of electronic technology in 1967 and this concept is unquestionably still relevant, even though
the media is much more immediate and constant than fifty years ago.

V. APPLYING

Think about how media have affected you. Share how it affected you in different areas.

A. COGNITIVE LEVEL:

Not applicable for me

B. BELIEF LEVEL:

Not applicable for me

C. EMOTIONAL LEVEL:

It only affects one area of my life, and that is my Emotional Level. Multiple studies have also shown that
unlimited use of social media will causes stress, bad moods and negative mental health. Many people nowadays
wake up in the morning and immediately check their social media accounts instead of Praying and giving Thanks
to God for another day in their life.

D. PHYSIOLOGICAL LEVEL:

Not applicable for me

E. BEHAVIORAL LEVEL:

Not applicable for me

VI. REFERENCE

MEDIA AND INFORMATION LITERACY BOOK FOR GRADE 12

Google

Prepared by: Checked by:

_______________________ _______________________
JENNY ROSE S. GROSPE, LPT ANDREW B. MIRANDA
Subject – Teacher Checking Committee

NOTED BY:
_______________________
EZER S. GUILLERMO Ed. D
School Principal