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After studying this chapter you should be able to do the following:


Define ethics.

2. Explain the relationship between ethics and free speech. 3. List and explain five criteria for ethical public speaking. 4. Define and discuss how best to avoid plagiarism. 5. Explain the relationship between ethics and credibility.

n July 2009, a popular radio host in Austin, Texas, known for his sarcastic humor, used on the air an "insulting and highly offensive" ethnic slur.t Radio station KLBJ cancelled the offender's show, suspended him for two weeks without pay, and permanently removed him from the air. when a station manager announced these actions to the local newspaper, he acknowledged.

I I r

There will be members of the community who feel we did not do enough and think there might be members of the community who feel we did too much.

The reason for the difference in public opinion? Although the radio host exercised his right to free speech, he did not exercise his ethica/ responsibility.

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CHAPTER

Speaking Freely and Ethically


ln the United States, the right to speak freely goes hand in hand with the re-

sponsibility to speak ethically. Ethics are the beliefs, values, and moral principles by which we determine what is right or wrong. Some ethical values appear to be
universal, or nearly so. For example, the major world religions share a remarkably

similar moral code for how people should treat others.2 For Christians, the Golden Rule-"Do unto others as you would have others do unto you"-is a fundamental value. Buddhism teaches a similar value: "One should seek for others the happiness one desires for oneself." Hinduism asks adherents to live by the precept "Do nothing to others which would cause pain if done to you." Judaism teaches, "What is hatefulto you, do not do to others." And lslam declares, "No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother that which he desires for
himself."

Although the underlying ethic of how to treat others is fundamental to the worldt religions, other ethical principles may reflect cultural norms, professional
standards, or individual beliefs and values. Ethics serve as criteria for many of the decisions we make in our personal and professional lives, andalso forour judgments of others' behavior. The student who refuses to cheat on a test, the employee who will not call in sick to gain an extra day of vacation, and the property owner who does not claim more storm damage than she actually suffered have all made choices based on ethics. We read and hear about ethical issues every

day in the media. Cloning, stem-cell research, and drug testing have engendered heated ethical debates among medical professionals. Advertising by some attorneys has incensed those who believe that an overall increase in frivolous litigation is tarnishing the profession. And in the political arena, debates about reforms of social programs, fiscal responsibility, and the regulation of financial institutions all hinge on ethical issues. Although you are undoubtedly familiar with many of these ethical issues, you may have given less thought to ethics in public speaking. They center on one main concern: ln a country in which free speech is protected by law, the right to speak freely must be balanced by the responsibility to speak ethically. The National Communication Association's Credo for Communication Ethics emphasizes the fundamental nature and far-reaching impact of ethical communication:
Ethical communication is fundamental to responsible thinking, decision making, and the development of relationships and communities within and across contexts, cultures, channels, and media. Moreover, ethical communication enhances human worth and dignity by fostering truthfulness, fairness, responsibility, personal integrity, and respect for self and others.3 Ethical considerations should guide every step of the public-speaking process. ethics The beliefs, values, and moral principles by which people determine what is right or wrong
As you determine the goal of your speech, outline your arguments, and select your

supporting material, think about the beliefs, values, and moral principles of your audience, as well as your own. Ethical public speaking is inherently audiencecentered, always taking into account the needs and rights of the listeners.

free speech
Legally protected speech or speech acts

ln our discussion of speaking freely and ethically, we will turn first to free speech-both its protection and its restriction by law and public policy. Then we

a
Speaking Freely

37

will discuss the ethical practice of free speech by speakers and listeners, providing guidelines to help you balance your right to free speech with your responsibilities as an audience-centered speaker. Within this framework, we will define and discuss plagiarism, one of the most troublesome violations of public-speaking ethics. And finally, we will discuss the relationship between ethics and speaker credibility.

Speaking Freely
In April 2007, CBS radio fired controversial talk-radio host Don lmus for derogatory comments he had made on the air
about members of the Rutgers University women's basketball team. In a commencement address at Queen's College two months later, author Susan lsaacs questioned the firing. "He is pretty much a pig|' lsaacs agreed. "But the demands for his ouster were wrong." She went on to explain,
lf you get rid of one talk show host, next to go is an offensive comedy show such as South Park, shockjock Howard Stern and conservative host Rush Limbaugh. Then it's your turn (to be
quieted).4

While critical of lmus's ethics,lsaacs nevertheless defended his


right to free
speech.

Free Speech and the U.S. Constitution


In
1791, the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was written to guarantee that "Congress shall make no law . . . abridging the freedom of speech." In the more than 200 years since then, entities as varied as state legislatures, colleges and universities, the American Civil Liberties Union, and the federal courts have sought to define through both law and public poliry the phrase "freedom of speech." Only a few years after the ratification of the First Amendment, Congress passed the Sedition Act, providing punishment for those who spoke out against the government. r/y'hen both Thomas Jefferson and Iames Madison declared this act unconstitutional, however, it was allowed to lapse.

Since the 1700s, court rulings and laws have continued, and will continue, to shape our interpretatton of the First Amendment. The Amendment protects free speech,

i speakers to speak out about conI troversia/ issues.


I

including the rights of protest

[Photo: A.

Ramey/Pho]"ro,ll._]____

__

Free Speech in the Twentieth Century


During World War I, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that it was lawful to restrict
speech that presented "a clear and present danger" to the nation. This decision led to the founding, in 1920, of the American Civil Liberties Union, the first organization formed to protect free speech. In 1940, Congress declared it illegal to urge the violent overthrow of the federal government. However, even as they heard the hate speech employed by Hitler and the Nazis, U.S. courts and lawmakers argued that only by protecting free speech could the United States protect the rights of minorities and the disenfranchised. For most of the last half of the twentieth century, the Supreme Court continued to protect rather than to limit free speech, upholding it as "the core aspect of democracy''s In 1964, the Supreme Court narrowed the

First Amendment
The amendment to the U.S. Constitution that guarantees free speech; the first of the ten

definition of slander, or false speech that harms someone. The Court ruled that before a public official can recover

amendments to the U.S. Constitution known collectively

as

the Bill of Rights

38

CHAPTER

Speaking Freely and Ethically


damages for slander, he or she must prove that the slanderous statement was made

with "actual malice."6 Another 1964 boost for free speech occurred not in the
courts but on a university campus. In December of that year, more than I,000 students at the University of California in Berkeley took over three floors of Sproul Hall to protest the recent arrest of outspoken student activists. The Berkeley Free Speech Movement that arose from the incident permanently changed the political climate of u.S. college campuses. In a statement on the thirty-year anniversary of the protest, Berkeley's vice chancellor Carol Christ wrote, "Today it is difficult to imagine life in a university where there are serious restrictions on the rights of

political advocacy."T
Free speech gained protection in the last two decades of the twentieth century, when the Supreme Court found "virtually all attempts to restrain speech in advance . . . unconstitutional," regardless of how hateful or disgusting the speech may seem to some.t In 1989, the Supreme Court defended the burning of the U.S. flag as a "speech act" protected by the First Amendment. In 1997, the Court struck down the highly controversial federal Communications Decency Act of 1996, which had imposed penalties for creating, transmitting, or receiving obscene material on the Internet. The Court ruled that "the interest in encouraging freedom of expression in a democratic society outweighs any theoretical but unproven ben' efit of censorship."e Perhaps no test of free speech received more publicity than the sensational 1998 lawsuit brought by four Texas cattlemen against popular talk-show host Oprah Winfrey. In a show on "mad cow disease," Winfrey had declared that she would never eat

another hamburger. Charging that her statement caused cattle prices to plummet, the cattlemen sued for damages; however, Winfrey's attorneys successfully argued that the case was an important test of free speech. Emerging from the courtroom after the verdict in her favor, winfrey shouted, "My reaction is that free speech not only lives, it rocks!"ro

Free Speech in the Twenty-first Century


No sooner had the new century begun than the right to free speech experienced one
of its most historically significant challenges. one month after the September 11,2001, terrorist attacks on the United States, the pendulum again swung toward restriction of free speech with the passage of the Patriot Act, which broadened the investigative powers of government agencies. The Patriot Act was roundly criticized by various civilrights, free-speech, and publishing groups. one coalition of such groups described the Patriot Act as "the latest in a long line of abuses of rights in times of conflict."tr
It is ironic that even as Americans debate the restrictions imposed by the Patriot Act, they recognized and offered restitution for historical infringement on free speech. ln May 2006, Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer formally pardoned 78 late citizens of Montana who had been imprisoned or fined under the Montana Sedition Act of 1918, convictions that "violated basic American rights of speech. . . ."12

speech act

A behavior, such as flag burning, that is viewed by law as nonverbal


communication and is subject to the same protections and limitations as verbal speech

The pendulum swung back in |une 2010, when the exercise of free speech created controversy for and hastened the retirement of veteran White House correspondent Helen Thomas. Asked by a rabbi to comment on Israel, Thomas responded that the Israelis should get out of Palestine. Although Thomas later both apologized and resigned from the white House Press corps, her right to free speech was upheld by former cBS News foreign correspondent Terry Phillips, who noted wryly,'Apparently, journalists are now only willing to defend free speech when it is safe."r3 We summarize the history of the First Amendment in Thble 2. 1. There can be little doubt that in the months and years to come, the United States and its citizens will

Speaking Ethically

39

TABLE 2.1 History of Free Speech in the United States

1791 1798 1919 1920 1940 1964 1989 1997 1998 2001 2006 2010

First Amendment guarantees that "Congress shall make no law

. . . abridging the freedom of speech,,

Sedition Act is passed (expired in 1801)


Supreme Court suggests that speech presenting a "clear and present danger" may be restricted

American Civil Liberties Union is formed


Congress declares it illegal to urge the violent overthrow of the federal government Supreme Court restricts definition of slander; Berkeley Free Speech Movement is born Supreme Court defendsthe burning of the U.S. flag as a ,,speech act,, Supreme Court strikes down Communications DecencyAct of 1996, in defense of free speech on the lnternet Oprah Winfrey successfully defends her right to speak freely on television

September 1 I terrorist attacks spark passage of the Patriot Act and new debate over the balance between national security and free speech
State of Montana pardons those convicted under the Montana Sedition Act of 1918 White House correspondent Helen Thomas retires amid controversy over what somg saw as her exercise of free speech

continue to debate the First Amendment as we try to achieve "balance among national security, free speech, and patriotism."la

Speaking Ethically
As the boundaries of free speech expand, the importance of ethical speech increases. Although there is no definitive ethical creed for a public speaker, teaihers and practitioners of public speaking generally agree that an ethical speaker is one who has a clear, responsible goal; uses sound evidence and reasoning; is sensitive to and tolerant of differences; is honest; and avoids plagiarism. In the discussion that follows, we offer suggestions for observing these ethical guidelines.

Have a Clear, Responsible Goal


The goal of a public speech should be clear to the audience. For example, if you are trying to convince the audience that your beliefs on abortion are more correct than those of others, you should say so at some point in your speech. If you keep your true agenda hidden, you violate your listeners' rights. In addiiion, an ethical goal should be socially responsible. A socially responsible goal is one that gives ihe listener choices, whereas an irresponsible, unethical goal is psychologicaliy coercive. Adolf Hitler's speeches, which incited the German people to hatred and genocide, were coercive, as were those of chinese leader Deng Xiaoping, who tried io intimidate Chinese citizens into revealing the whereabouts of leaders of the unsuccessful 1989 student uprising in Tiananmen Square. your overall objective is to inform or persuade, it is probably ethical; if your -lf goal is to coerce or manipulate, it is unethical. But lawyers and ethicists do not always agree on this distinction. As we have pointed out, Congress and the Supreme Court ethical speech have at times limited speech that incites sedition, violence, and riot, but they have Speech that is responsible, honest, also protected free speech rights "for both the ideas that people cherish and the and tolerant

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CHAPTER

Speaking Freely and Ethically

LEARNING FROM GREAT SPEAKERS


Mohandas Gandhi (teoq-t q+a)
The great Indian spiritual and political leader Mohandas Gandhi guided the twentiethcentury campaign for Indian independence from Britain. Even as Gandhi practiced free speech in the form of nonviolent protest, he accepted the responsibilities of ethical speech. His goal was clear; he accepted the consequences of his actions by allowing himself to be jailed several times; and he insisted on the accommodation of India's Muslim citizens. This ethical position led to his assassination by a Hindu extremist.rs An ethical speaker is true to his or her own beliefs. Although we encourage you to adapt your message to your audience, we don't recommend that you change your fundamental ethical principles just to avoid controversy. An effective and ethical audience-centered speaker maintains his or her core ethical beliefs while also considering the best strategies to make the message clear to his or her listeners.
[Photo: AP Wide World Photos]

thoughts they hate."16 Even those who defend a broad legal right to free speech recognize that they are defending the right to unethical, as well as ethical, speech. For example, faculty, administrators, and regents of the University of Colorado have for years debated the case of ethnic studies professor Ward Churchill, who, immediately following the 2001 terrorist attacks, compared some of those who died at the World Tiade Center to Holocaust architect Adolf Eichmann. Even as the university's president and the governor of Colorado recommended Churchill's dismissal, others staunchly defended his right to speak fueely.t7

Use Sound Evidence and Reasoning


Ethical speakers use critical-thinking skills such as analysis and evaluation to formulate arguments and draw conclusions. Unethical speakers substitute false claims and manipulation of emotion for evidence and logical arguments. In the early 1950s, Wisconsin senator )oseph McCarthy incited national panic by charging that Communists were infiltrating every avenue of American life. Thousands of people came under suspicion, many losing jobs and careers because of the false accusations. Never able to substantiate his claims, McCarthy nevertheless succeeded in his witch hunt by exaggerating and distorting the truth. One United Press reporter noted, "The man just talked in circles. Everything was by inference, allusion, never a concrete statement of fact. Most of it didn't make sense."'* Although today we recognize the flimsiness of McCarthy's accusations, in his time he wielded incredible power. Like Hitler, McCarthy knew how to manipulate emotions and fears to produce the results he wanted. It may sometimes be tempting to resort to false claims to gain power over others, but it is always unethical to do so. Some speakers bypass sound evidence and reasoning in order to make their conclusions more provocative. One contemporary rhetoric scholar offers this example of such short-circuited reasoning:
Let's say two people are observing who speaks in college classrooms and they come up with

1. Women are not as good at public speaking as men.

2. ln college classes on coed campuses where most professors are


women tend to talk less in class than men.le

male,

The first conclusion, based on insufficient evidence, reinforces sexist stereotypes with an inflammatory overgeneralization. The second, more qualified conclusion is more ethical.

Speaking
One last, but important, requirement for the ethical use of evidence and reasoning is to share with an audience all information that might help them reach a sound decision, including information that may be potentially damaging to your case. Even if you proceed to refute the opposing evidence and arguments, you have fulfilled your ethical responsibility by presenting the perspective of the other side. And you make your own arguments more convincing by anticipating and answering counterarguments and opposing evidence.

Ethically 4l

Be Sensitive

to and Tolerant of Differences

The filmmaker who ate nothing but McDonald's meals for his Oscar-nominated movie Super Size Me apologized for a profanity-laced, politically incorrect speech at a suburban Philadelphia school. Among other things, Morgan Spurlock joked about the intelligence of McDonald's employees and teachers smoking pot while he was speaking at HatboroHorsham High School. . . . Spurlock, 35, told The Philadelphia lnquier in a telephone interview that he "didn't think of the audience" and could have chosen his words better.2o
As we noted in Chapter 1, being audience-centered requires that you become as aware as possible of others' feelings, needs, interests, and backgrounds. Spurlock violated

this ethical principle in his remarks. Sometimes called accommodation, sensitivity to differences does not mean that speakers must abandon their own convictions for those of their audience members. It does mean that speakers should demonstrate a willingness to listen to opposing viewpoints and learn about different beliefs and values. Such willingness not only communicates respect; it can also help a speaker to select a topic, formulate a purpose, and design strategies to motivate an audience. Your authors are currently involved in an informal educational exchange with a
professor from the St. Petersburg Cultural Institute in Russia, and we recently had a chance to visit the professor and her family in St. Petersburg. In talking with the professor's talented teenage daughter, we inquired about her plans after she finished her university education. Smiling at us in both amusement and amazement, she replied, "Americans are always planning what they are going to do several years in the future. In Russia, we do not plan beyond two or three weeks. Life is too uncertain here." Having gained this insight into Russian life, we know now that it would raise false hopes to attempt to motivate Russian audiences with promises of benefits far in the future. Our new understanding not only helps us see that speaking of immediate, deliverable rewards is a more realistic and ethical approach to communication with our Russian friends, but it has broader implications as well. DePaul University Communication Professor Kathy Fitzpatrick notes,
Our success in public diplomacy will turn on our ability to speak in ways that recognize and appreciate how [our audiences] will interpret our messages.2l

A speaker who is sensitive to differences also avoids language that might be interpreted as being biased or offensive. Although it may seem fairly simple and a matter of common sense to avoid overtfy abusive language, it is not so easy to avoid language that discriminates more subtly. In Chapter 10, we look at specific words and phrases that can be unintentionally offensive and that ethical speakers should avoid.

Be Honest
Knowingly offering false or misleading information to an audience is an ethical violation. In 2003, President George W. Bush and members of his staff accepted responsibility for having told the public that Iraq was getting nuclear fuel from Africa, even after intelligence reports several months earlier had discredited the
accommodation Sensitivity to the feelings, needs, interests, and backgroLrnds of other people

7
42

CHAPTER

Speaking Freely and Ethically claim. In 1999, Toronto Blue Jays manager Tim |ohnson was fired after it was revealed that the stories he had told to his team about his combat experiences in Vietnam were false. During the war, it turned out, he had played ball while serving with the Reserves in California.22 Perhaps most famously, in |anuary 1998, President Bill Clinton's finger-wagging declaration that "I did not have sexual relations with that woman-Miss Lewinsky" was a serious breach of ethics that came back to haunt him. Many Americans were willing to forgive the inappropriate relationship; fewer could forgive the dishonesty. A seeming exception to the dictum to avoid false information is the use of hypothetical illustrations-illustrations that never actually occurred but that might happen. Many speakers rely on such illustrations to clarif, or enhance their speeches. As long as a speaker makes clear to the audience that the illustration is indeed

DENTLY CON N ECTI NG WITH YOUR AUDIENCE CON


FI

Remember That You Will Look More Confident Than You May Feel
you listen to other people presenting speeches, you will note that most speakers don't appear to be nervous. They are not dishonestly trying to hide their apprehension; most people simply do not appear outwardly as nervous as they may feel. This means that when you deliver your presentation, your listeners will not know that you feel nervous. You may feel some apprehension, but it is completely ethical to keep those feelings to yourself. Unless you tell your audience that you're nervous, it's unlikely that they will notice it.
As

hypothetical-for example, prefacing the illustration with such as "Imagine that . . ."-sqqfi use is ethical.

a phrase

Honesty also requires that speakers give credit for ideas and in-

formation that are not their own. The Publication Manual of the
American Psychological Association states that "authors do not present the work of another as if it were their own work. This can extend to ideas as weli as written words."23 Presenting the words and

ideas

of others without crediting them is called plagiarism. This ethical violation is


a separate discussion.

both serious enough and widespread enough to warrant

Don't Plagiarize
Although some cultures mayview unacknowledged borrowing from sources as a sign of respect and humility and an attempt to be audience-centered, in the United States and most other Western cultures, using the words, sentence structures, and/or ideas of another person without crediting the source is a serious breach of ethics. Yet even people who would never think of stealing money or shopliftingmay feel justified in plagiarizing-stealing words and/or ideas. One student commencement speaker who plagiarized a speech by the writer Barbara Kingsolver explained his action as resulting from the "expectation to produce something amazingi'2a
Even if you've never plagiarized public as a commencement address, perhaps you can remember copying a grade-school report directly from the encyclopedia; or maybe you ve even purchased or "borrowed" a paper to submit for an assignment in high school or college. These are obvious forms of plagiarism. Less obvious forms include plagiaphrasingIacing a speech with compelling phrases you find in a source; failing to give credit to a source or adequate information in a citation; or relying too heavily on the vocabuIary or sentence structure of a source.

Understand What Constitutes Plagiarism


as

anlthing

Understand That Plagiarism May Have Significant Consequences The


plagiarizing Presenting someone else's words or ideas as though they were one's
own

plagiaphrasing Failing to give credit for compelling phrases taken from another source

Center for Academic Integrity reports that 75 percent of college students admit to having cheated at least once.'s The Educational Testing Service has found that one Web site offering free term papers gets some 80,000 hits per day. Ironically, at least one such site claims to provide "non-plagiarized term papers"-ironic, because using any such paper is exactly what constitutes plagiarism!26 And communication researcher Todd Holm reports that more than 50 percent of 300 students surveyed reported cheating in some way in a public speaking class.27 Despite the near-epidemic occurrence of plagiarism, most colleges impose stiff penalties on students who plagiarize. Plagiarists almost always fail the assignment in question, frequently fail the course, and are sometimes put on academic probation or

Speaking
even expelled. And the risk of being caught is much greater than you might suspect. Many colleges subscribe to a Web-based plagiarism detection company such as Turnitin; other professors routinely use free detection sites such as Grammarly or even a search engine such as Google. A few years ago, one ofyour authors heard an excellent student speech on the importance of detecting cancer early. The only problem was that she heard the same

Ethically

43

speech again

in the following

class period!

On finding the "speech"-actually

Reader's Digest article that was several years old-both students were certain that they had discovered a surefire shortcut to an A. Instead, they failed the assignment,

ruined their course grades, and lost your author's trust. The consequences of plagiarism in other arenas can be even more dire, including the loss of a job or the end of a promising career.

Do Your Own Work The most flagrant cases of plagiarism result from not doing your own work. For example, while you are poking around the library for ideas to use in a speech assignment, you may discover an entire speech or perhaps an article that could easily be made into a speech. However tempting it may be to use this material, and however certain you are that no audience member could possibly have seen it, resist any urge to plagiarize. You will only be doing yourself a disservice if you do not learn how to compose a speech on your own. After all, you are in college to acquire
new skills.

Another way speakers may attempt to shortcut the speech preparation task is to ask another person to edit a speech so extensively that it becomes more that other person's work than their own. This is another form of plagiarism and another way of cheating themselves out of the skills they need to develop.

Acknowledge Your Sources Our admonition to do your own work in no way


suggests that you should not research your speeches and then share your findings with audience members. In fact, an ethical speaker is responsible for doing just that. Furthermore, some information is so widely known that you do not have to acknowledge a source for it. For example, you need not credit a source if you say that a person must be infected with the HIV virus in order to develop AIDS, or that the Treaty of Versailles was signed on |une 28,1919. This information is widely available in a variety of reference sources. However, if you decide to use any of the following in your speech, you must give credit to the source:

r
o o

Direct quotations, even if they are only brief phrases Opinions, assertions, or ideas ofothers, even ifyou paraphrase rather than quote them verbatim
Statistics

Any nonoriginal visual materials, including graphs, tables, and pictures

To be able to acknowledge your sources, you must first practice careful and systematic note-taking. Indicate with quotation marks any phrases or sentences that you photocopy or copy by hand verbatim from a source, and be sure to record the author, title, publisher or Web site, publication date, and page numbers for all sources from which you take quotations, ideas, statistics, or visual materials. Additional suggestions for systematic note-taking are offered in Chapter 6. In addition to keeping careful records of your sources, you must also know how to cite sources for your audience, both orally and in writing. Oral Citations. Perhaps you have heard a speaker say "Quote" while holding up both hands with index and middle fingers curved to indicate quotation marks. This is an artificial and distracting way to cite a source; an oral citation can be integrated

oral citation
The oral presentation of such information about a source as the author, title, and year of

more smoothly into a speech. For example, you might use the approach illustrated in the sample oral citation above. The publication date and author of a source are usually sufficient information

publication

44

CHAPTER

Speaking Freely and Ethically

SAMPLE ORAL CITATION


On a 2010 Web page titled Rabies, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention define rabies as
Provide the date. Speci{y the type o{ resource. Give the tltle. Provide the author or source. Pause briefly to signal that you are

about to begin quoting.

"a preventable viral disease of mammals most often transmitted through the bite of a rabid animal."

Quote the so!rce.


Pause again to indicate ihat you are

ending the quoted passage.

written citation
The written presentation of such information about a source as the author, title, and year of publication, usually formatted according to a conventional style

for an oral citation. In the example, the speaker also mentions the type of resource (Web page) and the title of the fact sheet (Rabies). Follow your instructor's preferences for the level of detail to include in your oral citations. Note that when you include an oral citation in a speech, the beginning and end of the qr,roted passage are indicated by pauses. The sample preparation outline in Chapter 9 gives additional examples of oral citations. Written Citations. You can also provide a written citation for a source. In fact, your public-speaking instructor may ask you to provide a bibliography of sources along with the outline or other written materials he or she requires for each speech. Instructors who require a bibliography will usually specify the format in which they want the citations; if they do not, you can use a style guide such as that published by the MLA (Modern Language Association) or the APA (American Psychological Association), both of which are available online as well as in traditional print format. Here is an example of a written citation in MLA format for the source quoted in the sample oral citation:
Rabies. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 June 2010. Web. 21 June

2010.

guide

Notice that the citation provides two dates: the date the material was posted online and the date it was accessed by the researcher. If you are unable to find the date the material was posted-or any other single element of information-proceed directly to the next item in the citation.

TL

U
TIJ

The Ethical Public Speaker o Has a clear, responsible goal . Uses sound evidence and reasoning o ls sensitive to and tolerant of differences . ls honest o Doesn't plagiarize

Additional information about citing sources and preparing


bibliography can be found in Chapter 6.

Perhaps now you are thinking, "What about those 'gray areasj those times when I am not certain whether information or ideas I am

presenting are common knowledge?" A good rule is this: When in doubt, document. You will never be guilty of plagiarism if you document something you didn t need to, but you could be committing plagiarism if you do not document something you should have
documented.

Speaking Credibly
credibility
An audience's perception of a speaker as competent, knowledgeable, dynamic, and trustworthy

Credibility is a speaker's believability. A credible speaker is one whom an audience perceives to be competent, knowledgeable, dynamic, and trustworthy. The last of those four faslqls-llustworthiness-is dependent in large part on the speaker's known consistent adherence to ethical principles.

Speaking Credibly
You trust people whom you believe to be ethical. In fact, the Greek rhetorician Aristotle used the term ethos-the root word of ethic and ethical-to refer to a speaker's credibility. Quintilian, a Roman teacher of public speaking, believed that an effective public speaker also should be a person of good character, a "good person speaking well." We examine credibility in more detail in Chapter 4, where we discuss analyzing your audience's attitudes toward you; in Chapter 9, where we discuss establishing your credibility in your speech introduction; and in Chapters 14 and 15, where we discuss the role of credibility in persuading an audience. For now, keep in mind that speaking ethically is one key to being perceived by your audience as a credible speaker.

45

46

CHAPTER

Speaking Freely and Ethically

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Ethical speaking is very important in a society that protects free speech. Although Congress and the courts have occasionally limited free speech by law and policy, more often they have protected and broadened its application. The right to free speech has also been upheld by such organizations as the American Civil Liberties Union and
by colleges and universities. i;'ril,*-,', ":.;.: . . " :-..-...
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sound decision, including information that may be potentially damaging to your case.

i r, -.,',,, .,, ...:;r l' i ; t,, -: *" The following passage comes from the book
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Abraham Lincoln, Public Speaker,byWaldo W. Braden:


The Second Inaugural Address, sometimes called Lincoln's Sermon on the Mount, was a concise,

tightly constructed composition that did not


as a

" *

Explain how ethical behavior serves


free speech.

balance to

waste words on ceremonial niceties or superficial

Why do you think the U.S. Supreme Court has historically considered flag burning and pornography to be "free speech acts"?

sentiment. The shortest Presidential inaugural address up to that time, it was only 700 words long, compared to 3,700 words for the First, and required from 5 to 7 minutes to deliver 28

j.-i*,f ,',i' .'. ,', - - " .'


right to free speech are responsible for tempering what they say by applying ethics, or moral principles and values. Although there is no definitive standard of ethics, most people agree that public speakers must be responsible, honest, and tolerant in order to be ethical. Accommodation, or sensitivity to differences, leads
Speakers who exercise their
speakers to demonstrate a willingness to listen to opposing viewpoints and learn about different beliefs and values. A speaker who is sensitive to differences avoids language that might be interpreted as being in any way biased or offensive. Plagiarism is one of the most common violations of speech ethics. You can usually avoid plagiarizing by un-

Which of the following statements should be credited to Braden if you were to use them in a speech? "Lincoln's second inaugural address is sometimes called Lincoln's Sermon on the Mount." "Because he was elected and sworn in for two terms as president, Abraham Lincoln prepared and delivered two inaugural addresses."

"Lincoln's second inaugural address was 700 words and 5 to 7 minutes long."
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at least the time of Franklin Delano Roosevelt, speechwriters have written many of the best speeches made by U.S. presidents. Is such use of

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derstanding what

it

is, doing your own work, and ac-

knowledging-orally, in writing, or both-the sources for any quotations, ideas, statistics, or visual materials you use in a speech.
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speechwriters ethical? Is it ethical to give credit to the presidents for memorable lines from speeches written by professional speechwriters?

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Ethical public speaking is inherently audiencecentered, always taking into account the needs and rights of the listeners.
The goal of a speech should be clear to the audience.

Speaking ethically allows your audience to trust you. Being trustworthy is an important part of being credible.
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Ifyou

keep your true agenda hidden, you


a speech is one that

The following Web sites explore and debate issues of free and ethical speech:

violate your listeners' rights.

A socially responsible goal for

" "

gives the listener choices, whereas an irresponsible, unethical goal is psychologically coercive.

The Ethics Connection. Santa Clara University's Markkula Center for Applied Ethics offers you case studies in ethics, as well as advice on current and perennial ethical issues. www.scu.edu/ethics/ The American Civil Liberties Union. Defending freedom of speech is one of the major activities of the ACLU. www.aclu.org/free-speech

An important requirement for the ethical use of evidence and reasoning is to share with an audience all information that might help them reach a

Avoiding Plagiarism
After you have developed your speech outline and are preparing your speaking notes, use the following questions to make certain that you are properly and ethically giving credit for the ideas, opinions, images, and words of others.

l.

Am I using ideas and sources that are not my own? Specifically, am I using

E a direct quotation? E someone else's idea or opinion, even if I'm

paraphrasing the idea or opinion

rather than directly quoting the information?

fl a statistic?
E a nonoriginal visual aid, graph,
table, or picture?

2.

I provided the appropriate oral citation of ideas, images, and words that are not my own? A proper oral citation includes:
Have

E tr E

the author ofthe source the title of the source the date ofthe source the type of source (for example, a book, an article,
a

tl
n
tr E

Web site)

3. When quoting material from a source, am I clearly indicating with my delivery


when the quotation begins and ends?
Pause

brieflybefore you begin quoting. briefly at the end of the quote.

Read the quotation.


Pause

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