Thoughts on Chapter 4

Chapter 4 from the Introduction to Public Relations is a very well written and informative chapter. While at times it seemed to drag on and my eyes seemd to drag down, I did review a lot that I have been taught before in the area of law and ethics. It is always good to be reminded that slander is spoken defamation and libel is published. I even made note of it in my book underlining the 's' in slander and spoken to try and help my memory keep that connection.

I do really appreciate the fact that the authors of this text use real life cases to put what I am reading into the real world. I absoluetly loved reading about the 1946 Supreme Court case of New York Times v. Sullivan because it rleates to the field of public relations that I planning on going into- non-profit. The quote " communicated information...on behalf of a movement whose existence and objectives are matters of the highest public intrest and concern (54)" got me really excited and strengthened my desire to go into public relations with the intent to help others.

I must admit that I still get confused with copyright and trademark laws. It tends to be that as long as the people with the most money are keeping their assets protected by the laws then everyone is happy. When the protection date seems to be creeping nearer those in power just throw more money at the right people and get the laws extended. Good example of this is Disney extending their date on the copyright to Mickey the Mouse.

Anyway, I feel that ethics should be second nature to everyone. Yet alas there are those few that do not have consciences and that is why ethics must enstilled in us all.