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Article
Getting Mill right.
USF St. Petersburg campus Faculty Publications
  • Deni Elliott
SelectedWorks Author Profiles:

Deni Elliott

Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2007
Abstract

Utilitarianism and its principal architect, John Stuart Mill, are staples of media ethics teaching and analysis. However, utilitarianism, in its usual presentation, is offered as a simplistic arithmetic formula: Do the greatest good for the greatest number. This quantification approach, when attached to Mill, misinterprets this philosopher and robs media ethics discussions of the rich reflection that an important classical theory can bring. Mill is a particularly suitable philosopher for presentation to students of journalism and mass communication. Mill provides a strong argument in favor of freedom of expression in addition to espousing a moral theory that is simultaneously protective of individual rights while promoting communitarian principles. But it is imperative to get Mill right. This essay attempts to do so and to offer a utilitarian decision tree for those who wish to properly apply Mill's theory in teaching and practice.

Comments
Citation only. Full-text article is available only through licensed access provided by the publisher. Published in Journal of Mass Media Ethics, 22(2&3), 100-112. doi: 10.1080/08900520701315806. Members of the USF System may access the full-text of the article through the authenticated link provided.
Language
en_US
Publisher
Routledge
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0
Citation Information
Elliott, D. (2007). Getting Mill right. Journal of Mass Media Ethics, 22(2&3), 100-112. doi: 10.1080/08900520701315806