PRSA Code Of Ethics Essay

A code of ethics goes above and beyond what is legally right. Most of us can recall some incident when a professional stayed out of jail by adhering to what is legally right, however, as reputable professionals, we would choose not to do business with them because they are dishonorable. In the field of public relations, the code of ethics for The Public Relations Society of America is “designed to be a useful guide for PRSA professionals as they carry out their ethical responsibilities” (PRSA Code of Ethics, p. 1). The document gives specific examples of situations where the ethical behavior might not be abundantly clear and illuminates the ethically right behavior. The PRSA Code of Ethics gives PR Professionals a list of core values elemental to the integrity of the profession.

Under the value of independence, PRSA reports, “We provide objective counsel to those we represent. We are accountable for our actions” (PRSA Code of Ethics, p. 2). This statement sounds like the organization wants its members to not end up beholden to anyone for anything. Accountability is another guideline the organization uses in their codes of ethics and its wrapped up in the value of independence which may be interpreted to mean that a feel accountability is a component of independence. The PRSA Code of Ethics mentions fairness 4 times, pointing to fairness as a core value elaborated with the statement “We respect all opinions and support the right of free expression” (PRSA Code of Ethics, p. 2). Fairness is a value often overlooked as it’s hard to delineate. Many people understand the idea that it is impartiality and just treatment or behavior without preference or intolerance, but applying the ideal can be hard. All of us carry some bias. It is simply human nature to favor one thing over another, and, most often in ethically minded people, this bias effects decision making