Column: Can scientists moonlight as activists — or does that violate an important ethical code?; Los Angeles Times, November 17, 2022

OPINION COLUMNIST, Nicholas Goldberg, Los Angeles Times; Column: Can scientists moonlight as activists — or does that violate an important ethical code?

Kalmus, Chornak and their colleagues believe it is their moral responsibility as scientists to help awaken society to the dangers of climate change, which include not just more of the raging storms, droughts, wildfires and heat waves we’re already experiencing, but very possibly famine, mass migration, collapsing economies and war.

I think they’re right. 

But as more and more scientists have become engaged in climate activism over the years, they have faced pushback from traditionalists who insist that scientists should be disinterested, impartial “seekers of truth” who keep their opinions to themselves, thank you very much."

Most judges in survey support U.S. Supreme Court having ethics code; Reuters, June 22, 2022

Reuters; Most judges in survey support U.S. Supreme Court having ethics code

"Hundreds of judges nationwide believe that U.S. Supreme Court justices should be subject to an ethics code, according to a poll released Wednesday, with one saying they should set a "very high bar for the rest of us to emulate."

The National Judicial College, which provides training to judges nationally, said that in a survey of more than 12,000 of its alumni, 97% of the 859 judges who responded agreed Supreme Court justices should be bound by an ethics code."

Supreme Court Might Get a Code of Ethics Thanks to Clarence Thomas; Newsweek, March 31, 2022

 ALEXANDRA HUTZLER , Newsweek; Supreme Court Might Get a Code of Ethics Thanks to Clarence Thomas

"Supreme Court justices are the only judges in the United States not forced to abide by a formal ethics code, but that could change as a result of the controversy surrounding Clarence Thomas.

The 74-year-old senior justice is facing calls to recuse himself from cases related to the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol after text messages revealed that his wife, Virginia Thomas, expressed support for efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election."

House Ethics Committee struggles to crack down on bad behavior; The Washington Post, April 2, 2022

 Paul Kane, The Washington Post; House Ethics Committee struggles to crack down on bad behavior

"Rep. Ted Deutch (D-Fla.) can cite almost verbatim the first rule of congressional conduct.

“Members shall behave at all times in a manner that reflects creditably upon the House,” he said, unprompted, during a Wednesday interview, forgetting just one extra “shall” in the opening clause of the House’s Code of Official Conduct.

As chairman of the House Ethics Committee, Deutch would like to see a bit more vigorous policing of behavior that doesn’t break specific rules but clearly brings discredit to the institution...

Deutch thinks there is room for the ethics panel to take up issues like this, if both sides are willing to just take the first clause of the rule book seriously.

“If members are doing things that are abhorrent, then it should certainly trigger a conversation about clause one,” Deutch said. “Again, the broadest interpretation of that rule is what is required.”"

MapLab: The Case for a Cartographer’s Code of Ethics; Bloomberg, March 9, 2022

Marie Patino, Bloomberg ; MapLab: The Case for a Cartographer’s Code of Ethics

"In 2017, Kent spearheaded the drafting of the first and only known professional code of cartography ethics for the British Cartographic Society (BCS) while he was the president of the organization. The code upholds five principles: Honesty, integrity, competence, respect and responsibility. It also warns of potential sanctions that can be taken against members if they don’t follow these principles, including being banned from the BCS — though Kent says this hasn’t happened yet.

“There’s an increased sense of responsibility that goes with the idea of mapmaking.” Kent says. “I think cartographers have for too long not really grasped the idea that what they’re doing has immense power to change the way how people see the world.”

Now, momentum for ethical guidelines may be picking up...

Buckley, who created a user group at Esri to discuss best practices and ideas for mapmaking ethics, is planning ethics discussions at other map gatherings this year. “Having good examples, I think, is what we need to move towards next,” Buckley said. “After we come up with a code of ethics, the statements have to be supported by resources that people can look at to understand how to enact ethical practices.”"

A New Code for Ethical Collecting Calls on the Art Market to Do Better by Transparently Working with Dealers; ART News, March 1, 2022

Tessa Solomon , ART News; A New Code for Ethical Collecting Calls on the Art Market to Do Better by Transparently Working with Dealers

"In 2020, Pepe gathered a group of like-minded collectors from around the world—Pedro Barbosa, Iordanis Kerenidis, Andre Zivanari, Sandra Terdjman, Haro Cumbusyan, and Jessica and Evrim Oralkan—to form a think tank dedicated to tackling the problem. The collective, working with an advisory team of 15 curators and artists, spent over a year drafting a set of principles and standards using “the language of professionals,” or what other industries use as a means of heading off power imbalances, according to Pepe. The draft is a living document, continually open to edits and additions as deeper dimensions of the issue reveal themselves.

Last week, the collective released the text of their efforts at the ARCO Madrid art fair. Titled Code of Conduct for Contemporary Art Collectors, the 11-page manual provides a template for collectors of all levels for ethically acquiring, exhibiting, and donating art, which was also reviewed by the group’s advisory team.

The code includes how to interact with dealers responsibly and transparently, how to support institutions and serve on their governing boards, and how to build and maintain collections. Each bullet point is broken down into several subcategories—the section on dealing with dealers, for example, covers “holding dealers accountable to pay artist[s] promptly,” and “not requesting artworks below fair market price,” such as asking for a discount...

This isn’t the first of ethical guideline introduced for the art world, though it is the most comprehensive. Previous attempts include the Basel Art Trade Guidelines, published by the Basel Institute on Governance, and the American Alliance of Museums’s Code of Ethics for Museums, but enforcement of either is uneven and the scope of their concerns is significantly narrower...

The group plans to update the code yearly, adding new concerns as they arise and other recommendations crowdsourced from a survey on the website. Oralkan added, “It’s a good thing—living documents shouldn’t have an end.”"

The Supreme Court needs a code of ethics; The Hill, February 10, 2022

STEVEN LUBET, The Hill; The Supreme Court needs a code of ethics

"A Supreme Court ethics code could delineate the circumstances in which a justice may address an overtly political audience, as well as the appropriateness of making secret speeches at all. 

The specific provisions of a Supreme Court ethics code would be up to the justices, whose public approval has been plummeting in recent years. As my colleagues and I wrote in our open letter, “even if primarily aspirational [a code] would have a broad salutary impact, assisting current and future members of the Court to transparently address potential conflicts and other issues in a way that builds public trust in the institution.” Supreme Court ethics should not be a black box."

Serious questions remain about the ethics code for new appellate court; The Exponent Telegram, January 16, 2022

David McMahon, The Exponent Telegram; Serious questions remain about the ethics code for new appellate court

"West Virginia’s newest court is set to open its doors this year, but important questions are still to be determined about an ethics code for its judges.

Proposed by legislators in early 2021 and signed into law by Governor Jim Justice soon after, the West Virginia Intermediate Court of Appeals is speeding towards its July start date.

Key among the rules by which it will operate are requirements for situations in which justices must decide whether to remove themselves from a case because of the potential for bias or a personal connection to a litigant or the case."

How Do You Practice Responsible Astrology?; Wired, January 5, 2022

 DIANA ROSE HARPER, Wired; How Do You Practice Responsible Astrology?

"Some professional astrological organizations attempt to address these issues through codes of ethics, but because there’s no governing body dictating who can and cannot call themselves an astrologer, such codes are limited in their capacity to reign in practitioners behaving irresponsibly. Additionally, those codes, by their very nature, cannot fully address ethical differences across cultures or generational divides."

Ethical aspects relating to cyberspace: copyright and privacy; Israel Defense, January 9, 2022

Giancarlo Elia Valori , Israel Defense; Ethical aspects relating to cyberspace: copyright and privacy

"A further right - the right to privacy - is one of the most fundamental rights: it reflects the natural human need for privacy, confidentiality and autonomy, as well as for the protection of one's own “personal sphere” from outside intrusion, and the ability to make decisions without being spied on and to remain oneself and maintain one’s own individuality.

It is no coincidence that in all international documents declaring human rights and freedoms, as well as in all codes of ethics related to the sphere of information, privacy is proclaimed as a fundamental moral value, which constitutes the foundation of human freedom and security, and therefore requires respect and protection."

Public Relations Bring Ethics Under the Spotlight; Entrepreneur, December 31, 2021

Krishna Athal , Entrepreneur ; Public Relations Bring Ethics Under the Spotlight

Contemporary PR should constantly review its codes and practices.

"Ethical public relations should not aim merely to confuse or cause equivocation but should inform and honestly influence judgment based on good reasons that advance the community. A necessary precondition of professionalism is ethically defensible behavior. Such a framework derives from philosophical and religious attitudes to behavior and ethics, laws and regulations, corporate and industry codes of conduct, public relations association codes of ethics, professional values and ethics, training and personal integrity."

Realtor ethics case involving gay rights, Montana pastor garnering national attention; KTVH, December 29, 2021

Mike Dennison, KTVH ; Realtor ethics case involving gay rights, Montana pastor garnering national attention

"Weyandt said Huber can hold and express any religious belief he wants, but that he can’t profess anti-gay views and still be a member of the Realtors’ group, according to the code of ethics.

“I definitely respect the individual’s right to their freedom of speech and expression, but when you’re clearly violating the governing doctrine of a private institution, that issues membership, that’s a whole other story,” he said.

Weyandt also said Huber is free to continue selling real estate. 

However, if a Code of Ethics violation leads to Huber getting kicked out of the Realtors’ group, he would lose access to the Montana Regional multiple-listing service for properties, potentially making it difficult to conduct business as a real-estate agent."

Ethicist: Coronavirus reduces complex moral codes to the essential — protect your neighbor; USA Today, August 17, 2020

Tom Cooper, USA Today; Ethicist: Coronavirus reduces complex moral codes to the essential — protect your neighbor

"It is time not only for increased ethics education and learning from the best practices of the great ones. It is time to wake up our leaders and ourselves.  

Our complex moral codes can be simplified rather quickly these days: “Wash your hands." “Wear your mask.” “Stand six feet apart.” Behold, the Ten Commandments are reduced to three."

Metro’s ethics changes are welcome. But they’re only a start.; The Washington Post, September 29, 2019

Editorial Board, The Washington Post; Metro’s ethics changes are welcome. But they’re only a start.

"THE REPUTATION of former Metro chairman Jack Evans wasn’t the only thing that was tarnished amid the swirl of allegations that he used his public office to advance his private interests. Public trust in the Metro board was also badly shaken after it completely botched its handling of the allegations. It’s encouraging, then, that the board has taken a first step in its own rehabilitation by amending its code of ethics.

 

“The reforms will improve transparency, accountability and fairness of all parties,” board chairman Paul C. Smedberg said of revisions to the ethics policy that were approved on Thursday. The changes include a clearer definition of conflicts of interests, putting the transit agency’s inspector general in charge of investigations and opening the process to the public with requirements for written reports and discussions held in public."

Why Won’t John Roberts Accept an Ethics Code for Supreme Court Justices?; Slate, January 16, 2019

Steven Lubet, Slate; Why Won’t John Roberts Accept an Ethics Code for Supreme Court Justices? 

"Supreme Court justices also face ethics questions. Is it permissible for justices to provide anonymous leaks to the press about their private conferences? May they criticize political candidates, speak at meetings of partisan legal organizations, or raise funds for charities? May they vacation with litigants in the middle of a pending case or comment on legal issues or proceedings in lower courts? May clerks and court staff be assigned to work on the justices’ private books and memoirs? These are not hypotheticals. At least one justice has engaged in each of these activities in past years, and there is no definitive code of conduct that prohibits them."

Justices Would Get Ethics Code Under New Democrat Bill; The National Law Journal, Janaury 7, 2019

Tony Mauro and Marcia Coyle, The National Law Journal; 

Justices Would Get Ethics Code Under New Democrat Bill

The bill is the latest of repeated efforts by Congress to impose an ethics code on the Supreme Court, which is exempt from the code first promulgated in 1973 by the Judicial Conference.

 

"The first bill introduced by the Democratic-led House of Representatives last week contains a provision that would include U.S. Supreme Court justices for the first time in a newly created code of conduct.

If passed, the provision could raise separation-of-powers issues and would likely irritate the high court, which covets its independence and its special status under the Constitution. The provision could also revive the controversy over ethics complaints against Justice Brett Kavanaugh that were dismissed last month because he is now on the Supreme Court, outside the purview of existing judicial ethics rules.

H.R. 1, dubbed the “For the People Act,” is a wide-ranging bill that covers issues of transparency, corruption, ethics and campaign finance reform."

EDITORIALLY SPEAKING: Ethics code should steer conduct; Muskogee Phoenix, August 9, 2017

Muskogee Phoenix Editorial Board; EDITORIALLY SPEAKING: Ethics code should steer conduct

"The document requires everyone to sign a confidentiality agreement before entering an executive session. Anyone who refuses to sign the agreement will not be allowed into the meeting.

We would hope that anyone who is elected to public office would have the integrity and character to understand that what happens in executive session must stay in executive session. That is, after all, the entire point of an executive session.

We would hope anyone elected to public office would not need a piece of paper to ensure ethical conduct."

Setting a standard: The new city Ethics Board is a vital matter; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 12/4/16

Editorial Board, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette; Setting a standard: The new city Ethics Board is a vital matter:

"The city’s reconstituted Ethics Hearing Board has the opportunity to set a standard for local government. Legislation passed by Pittsburgh City Council and signed by Mayor Bill Peduto appears to give the board real teeth to root out ethics violations and impose discipline. Just as important, however, will be the board’s work in fostering a climate where officials, employees and others involved in the city better understand the rules and diligently strive to comply with them... Board members must have taught law, been subject to ethics codes or otherwise have an “ethics background.”"