Ethical Issues In Presidential Elections

As the 2016 Presidential election approaches, we as voters want to elect the most fit candidate for the job. But what happens when candidates use methods that attempt to skew the truth or simply lie to the voters? In order to be able to make an informed decision as to who should be the next leader of the United States, voters must be able to see through the lies and manipulations. Not only is this a political issue, but when candidates purposely use misinformation to get ahead or to hurt opponents, this becomes an ethical issue. This essay attempts to suggest solutions that address the significant problem of propagandistic tactics in the campaigns of many candidates. The media must be held accountable for any misinformation reported, but they

The problem is usually exacerbated by a concept called selective attention. People are more likely to watch the news network that most matches their own ideology, and this can create a more polarized electorate. If all news networks would attempt to address all issues in an ethical manner that treats the other point of view with respect, then the voters would have a more complete view of the important issues. In the previously mentioned study by WorldPublicOpinion.org, it was discovered that “substantial levels of misinformation were present in the daily consumers of all news sources” (Ramsay 19). While it was seen that people who had greater exposure to news sources were generally better informed, there were many instances in which greater exposure to a certain news source increased misinformation on specific issues. Viewers of Fox News were found more likely to have the view that scientists believe that climate change is not occurring (30% more likely than those who did not watch Fox News) and that it was not clear whether or not Obama was born in the United States (31% more likely). This degree of misinformation is unacceptable and proves that misinformation in the media is not a phenomenon, but rather an epidemic. The media must focus not only on being accurate, but also on

If people vote based upon lies and manipulations by the candidates and the news, the result of the election might not necessarily be what the people want or need. Lies can undermine the trust that people have in their governments, thus creating tensions that can result in violence. Even in instances in which the lies do no tangible harm (for example the lie Bill Clinton told when he testified to not having an affair with Monica Lewinski), they must be treated by the media and the public as unethical and unacceptable. The media must be liable for correcting misinformation both from candidates and more importantly from itself. But still a problem lies in the stories that the network decides to cover. If a story might cause damage to an ideological interest of a network they might not cover it. This problem remains in both the left-wing and right-wing media. The only solution lies in the democratization of the news medium by the internet. If everyone has the power to report lies and injustice, then the world can become a more transparent