South Korea Writing Robot Code of Ethics

Even robots have to worry about ethics codes.

An ethical code to prevent humans abusing robots, and vice versa, is being drawn up by the government of South Korea, where millions of dollars are being devoted to robot research. South Korea is one of the world's most high-tech societies and authorities there say that robotics are a key economic driver. The Ministry of Information and Communication has predicted that every South Korean household will have a robot by between 2015 and 2020, according to BBC News.

The new guidelines could reflect the three laws of robotics put forward by author Isaac Asimov in his short story Runaround in 1942.

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Kiss Sarbanes-Oxley Goodbye?

When the new Congress began its session in January, two familiar faces were not present: Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes and Rep. Michael G. Oxley, who are both retiring (after 30 and 26 years, respectively.) Many companies think their main legacy, The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, ought to be retired with them.

Sarbanes-Oxley has seriously harmed American corporations and financial markets without increasing investor confidence, say critics.

Ethics Light

via NoisyRoom.net

The Ethics of Metaverse Journalism

Wagner James Au, publisher of Second World Notes, the Second Life newspaper, is making a "my willy nilly effort to come up with a workable ethics for reporting in the metaverse."

He questions whether reporting on recent grid attacks that have brought down the world gives the attackers an award by giving them publicity. He writes: "Attentive readers may be inclined to see parallels to conundrums from real world journalism-- for example, when the media gives prominent coverage to a minor terrorist attack, are they just reporting the news, or unintentionally becoming an abettor after the fact, while unnecessarily alarming the public?"

Business Ethics Gurus' Business is Booming

It's a hot time to be a business ethics expert says the Atlanta Journal Constitution. One sign: the Atlanta for the Society for Business Ethics' annual conference workshops included their first-ever workshop for members on how to deal with the press. Other sessions included "Markets and Business Ethics," "The Corporation and Moral Agency" and one titled simply "Wal-Mart."

Need certified multilanguage translation of your company's Code of Ethics? Phone Sloan Friedman at SRF Global Translations.

University Launches Online Journalism Ethics Analysis

The School of Journalism of Universidad Diego Portales in Santiago de Chile has launched a new online service about Journalism Ethics Analysis, (in Spanish).

Users can submit questions about journalism ethics issues. A group of teachers analyzes it and publishes the answer on the site. Some of the latest questions:

* Can you byline a story that doesn't include field reports from that journalist, but only reports from agencies and Internet?
* How do you distinguish between press notes and informercial notes?

via Juan Carlos Camus at Poynter.org

Mark Cuban Shakes Up Investment Ethics With Sharesleuth

Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks and seriate entrepreneur has funded a website called sharesleuth, which will focus on "corporate chicanery and securities fraud." The site will initially have a blog format, then, after it proves its worth, go subscription.

Cuban told BusinessWeek.com in an email that he'll buy and sell stocks based on scoops the site uncovers, even before they're published.

"There are a million ugly stories in the financial underground," he wrote. "We plan on finding and sharing and profiting from them." He declined to comment further.

Isn't that insider trading? Didn't Martha Stewart go to jail for that? Not necessarily.

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Japan's Top Banker Embroiled in Ethics Scandal

Revelations that the Japanese central bank governor, Toshihiko Fukui, owned $90,000 of a stock fund accused in an insider trading scandal have raised an ethics issues for the bank and helped cause not only the biggest sell-off in Tokyo's stock market since 9/11, but also a political firestorm, according to The New York Times.

A Bank of Japan spokesman, Takashi Yoshimura, denied that there is an ethics issue, saying that the bank's ethics guidelines only required employees, including Mr. Fukui, to report internally any purchases or sales of stocks, and any profits, and did not limit where they could invest their money.

In the most understated comment of the year, Mr. Fukui apologized during a meeting of Cabinet members. "I'm sorry," he said. "I have created a fuss."

"At the very least, it is a warning that the bank needs to tighten its ethical standards," said Naoki Iizuka, chief economist at the Dai-Ichi Life Research Institute.

Al Gore: Climate Change is a Moral Issue, Not a Political One

Paramount Pictures and Former Vice President Al Gore have begun a broad and brilliant partnership with MySpace to promote the climate change documentary "An Inconvenient Truth." Gore said in a statement, "MySpace has a unique ability to mobilize its community around an urgent cause."

In the film's trailer, Gore, who introduces himself: "Hello I'm Al Gore, I used to be the next president of the United States," says "This is not a political issue so much as a moral issue."

Interesting that he used the word moral, which is so closely intertwined with ethics. The definition of ethics, in The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, says "The field of ethics, also called moral philosophy, involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior."

Gore, now the dark horse in the 2008 elections, may have sounded like a jerk when he said he invented the Internet, but he certainly is demonstrating a remarkably astute understanding of how to use it for his cause.

The documentary's MySpace blog features the trailer, allows ticket purchases, and invites MySpace's more than 70 million registered members to meet and exchange ideas.

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