3A. Electronic Media

Abstract

Chapter 3, which intricately profiles the 24 journalism and public relation professionals who participated in the qualitative interviews. Chapter 4 offers an analysis of the quantitative survey data regarding the study. Then, Chapters 5 through 8 include extensive interview excerpts illustrating the media exemplars’ personal reflections on the topics of public service, moral courage, humility and hubris, and ‘‘crucible’’ experiences. Finally, the book concludes with a section offering implications for the study of virtue ethics and moral psychology in the journalism and public relations fields. Combined, the survey and interview data provide a detailed portrait of what it means to be a moral exemplar in journalism and public relations. Findings suggest that exemplars exhibit a commitment to public service and professionalism, display the personality traits of extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness and openness, and perceive their work as a special ‘‘calling.’’ Particularly impressive is the patchwork of stories gleaned from interview data illustrating how public service, courage, humility, and adversity contribute to the core identity of media exemplars. Plaisance ensures that the exemplars’ own voices shine through, offering a richness and honesty to each theme that is explored. The exemplars’ long quotations are further contextualized with relevant psychology and ethics research citations. On the other hand, the extremely long quotations can, at times, be overwhelming to the reader. It is quite easy to get lost in the lengthy stories, making some thematic connections between the passages seem unclear. Virtue in Media: The Moral Psychology of Excellence in News and Public Relations makes several key contributions to media ethics research. The multimethodological design pairs quantitative analysis of data from a five-part survey instrument assessing personality traits and ethical perspectives with qualitative life-story interview data to create one of the most extensive and complete analyses of media professionals’ moral reasoning. Additionally, the resulting Model of the Morally Motivated Self offers media scholars and practitioners a visual representation of the various facets and traits that comprise a moral exemplar. Moreover, the study’s attention to virtue ethics contributes an alternative to the more developed deontological, utilitarian, or discourse ethics research streams in communication. Ultimately, the book will introduce both new and seasoned ethics scholars to the world of literature from moral and social psychology and their applications to journalism and public relations, which will surely inspire future media ethics research and inquiry into the morally motivated self.